tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-46840416884590975632018-02-13T22:27:26.296+00:00roleplay-geekThe Random Mumblings of a UK Games Master on all aspects of Pen and Paper or Tabletop Role Playing Games like, Dungeons and Dragons (D&amp;D), Runequest, Tunnels and Trolls (T&amp;T) Call of Cthulhu (CoC), Paranoia, Judge Dredd, and part of the Old School Renaissance (OSR). I also publish Free and pocket money priced RPG Stuff such as Scenarios, Miniatures, Maps, Card Games and Boardgames, Gamer Clothing and GM AidsAntony Brothertonhttps://plus.google.com/107992636120077421391noreply@blogger.comBlogger300125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4684041688459097563.post-13341466347263358882018-02-13T22:27:00.001+00:002018-02-13T22:27:26.433+00:00Visualising Judge Dredd: Dream, Design, Print<br />As a kid reading 2000AD, I was enthralled by the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zarjaz_(disambiguation)" target="_blank">zarjaz</a> ideas that the writers invented.&nbsp; As an adult, I see that many of the stories took contemporary issues and explored them to their logical extremes.<br /><br />Take sugar for example, in the 70s &amp; 80s as kids we would think nothing of downing a litre of Vimto followed by handfuls of popping candy to see if our mouths exploded.&nbsp; In the Dredd universe it is the most addictive substance in the galaxy and more illegal than narcotics.<br /><br />I have used this classic Sci-Fi narrative approach extensively when creating the backdrop to my Mega City One adventures (it works particularly well for crazes).&nbsp; Take a common or garden thing and amp it to the max.&nbsp; However, I can sometimes be guilty of not describing what is in my head in enough detail that players can formulate effective plans.&nbsp; A physical representation such as miniatures would be ideal and is now a real possibility thanks to budget 3D Printers.<br /><br /><h3>From Friday Night Dream, through Design and Print to Table</h3><br />Last Friday saw me throw a new challenge at the PCs in the form of Fast Incredibly Destructive Giant Ironclad Tank (FIDGIT) Spinners.&nbsp; These heavily armoured combat vehicles are being transported through Sector 55 to the Omni Dome where they will take part in a demolition derby with the last vehicle running crowned the winner.&nbsp;<br /><br />The description I gave to my players was a classic UFO festooned with rotating rings of blades and spikes.&nbsp; The vehicle runs on three wheels like a dodgem car giving it an incredibly small turning circle.&nbsp; <br /><br /><h3>Design in Sketchup</h3><br />I've been using Sketchup for quite a while and it has to be one of the easiest 3D modelling packages around, the best thing is that it is free.&nbsp; The design was simple, a relatively easy taks to design in sketchup as it is essentially a series of circles which are lathed to create the cones and a dome.&nbsp; Wheels and blades are simple shapes etruded with the push/pull tool.<br />&nbsp; <br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7_7Mo1vQ46g/WoAGFBPrCsI/AAAAAAAAFz8/sAcZIu50lMkkBX1c1s4454HYrLj2RJLdwCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/judge-dredd-fidget-spinner.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="579" data-original-width="1210" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7_7Mo1vQ46g/WoAGFBPrCsI/AAAAAAAAFz8/sAcZIu50lMkkBX1c1s4454HYrLj2RJLdwCPcBGAYYCw/s320/judge-dredd-fidget-spinner.jpg" width="550" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A FIDGIT Spinner</td></tr></tbody></table><h3>Export, Slice and Print&nbsp;&nbsp;</h3><br />I use an old copy of Sketchup on my venerable 08 iMac but the latest version of Sketchup Free is a web based tool.&nbsp; It is a trivial task to port from one to the other and export as an .STL file and import into my slicer Cura 3.1.&nbsp; This then gets sent to the 3D Printer (in my case a knock-off Prusa Mk3) which converts raw PLA filament into a finished FIDGIT Spinner in 1 hour and 25 minutes.<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8I0w4Re4uAk/WoNisHdlzqI/AAAAAAAAF0g/t0vFQ-4-NIMKnD81RIYYDLo8HudIvDQDQCLcBGAs/s1600/Judge-Dredd-3D-Prints.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="848" data-original-width="1200" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8I0w4Re4uAk/WoNisHdlzqI/AAAAAAAAF0g/t0vFQ-4-NIMKnD81RIYYDLo8HudIvDQDQCLcBGAs/s320/Judge-Dredd-3D-Prints.jpg" width="550" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A couple of 3d Printed Spinners and a 5th Element Taxi <br />with Laserburn Lawmen and GZG 15 mm Sci-Fi minis for scale</td></tr></tbody></table>As you can imagine the potentil is tantalizingly infinite and it is now quite literally possible to go from imagination to reality in time for next weeks game.<br /><br /><br />&nbsp; Antony Brothertonhttps://plus.google.com/107992636120077421391noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4684041688459097563.post-47353765631512109542018-02-11T09:01:00.001+00:002018-02-11T09:06:27.467+00:00Prog 3 - Juve Punks, a Vampire and Meg Way Carnage<b>The ongoing adventures of a Judge patrol in Sector 55 of Mega City One</b><br /><h3>Firefight on Floor 426</h3>The synthi wood door of the apartment splintered into a thousand pieces when Dave Sputum unloaded his stub gun.&nbsp; Steele quips <i>&nbsp;</i><br /><br /><i>"Start to blubber punk, here comes the rubber!"</i><br /><br />and unleashes a 3 shot burst of Rubber Ricochet rounds which floors one of the perps.&nbsp; Holmes tosses a stumm gas grenade into the apartment which is quickly kicked out into the hallway.<br /><br />Meanwhile Judge Que decides to gain access to via the balcony nextdoor and High Exes the door of the adjoining apartment.&nbsp; The residents of 426-58 are stunned but get out of her way as she barrels through the pad heading for the balcony.&nbsp; Obstructing a Judge in the execution of their duties is a crime.<br /><br />Psi-Judge Wallace has a precog vision of the perp charging out into the corridor.&nbsp; Pulling down their respirators the Judges in the corridor brace to engage.&nbsp; Steele steps into the doorway and fires 3 GP rounds striking the punk in his left arm as Holmes fires a 3 round burst opportunistically over Steele's shoulder and takes out a door handle, a light fixture and the 90inch Tri-D Set hanging on the lounge wall.&nbsp; After reloading Dave fires wildly at the patrol, a lucky shot slams into Holmes abdomen.&nbsp; As he charges down the narrow corridor of the apartment he trips over the unconcious body of his&nbsp; accomplice Nelson Spunge, falls flat on his face and the stub gun skitters across the floor.<br /><br />Que vaults over the adjoining balcony ledges and lands in a combat stance just as Steele executes a coup de grace.<br /><br /><i>"You're the Slime, I punish the Crime!"</i> retorts Steele and unloads a 3 shot burst into Dave's head splattering blood, bone and brain fragments across the apartment.<br /><br />Wallace administers a hypo spray to Holmes gutshot, cuffs the unconcious juve and then tears off a wakey-wake strip wafting it under the punk's nose.&nbsp; With a splutter Nelson Spunge comes to, blinking incredulously at the blood soaked shattered remains of his family home.<br /><br /><i>"You killed Dave, you drokking gruds!!" </i><br /><i><br /></i> <i>"Dave got in well over his head"</i> laughs Steele, <i>"Now tells us what you know about the Nitro-9"</i><br /><br />Nelson explains that he has no idea what the Judge is talking about.&nbsp; Tech Judge Murtagh sweeps the apartment with the sniffer which comes up empty.&nbsp; Spunge continues to tell the judges that Dave got out of the Iso-Cubes this morning after a 3 month stretch for handling stolen goods.&nbsp; The pair celebrated by going to city bottom and buying some vintage comics, none of the hard stuff, just a Dandy, a couple of Beano's and a Tammy.&nbsp; The dogeared contraband publications sit incriminatingly on the nearby coffee table being avidly read by one of Dave's eyeballs.<br /><br />As the adrenaline fades from her bloodstream Que peers over the balcony.&nbsp; Running along the pedway some 10 floors below is a strange 2 foot tall blue mammal with a turtle shell pursued by two YPs, a girl with long red hair and a boy with pair hair, dressed in white uniforms emblazoned with a red "R" closely followed by a large beige cat.&nbsp; Passing this off as a reaction to the stumm gas she refocuses her attention on the apartment.<br /><br />The Judges bag Dave's stub gun, seal the apartment with CS tape, radio in for a clean up crew and escort the juve down to the holding post outside the block entrance.&nbsp; After a quick trip to the block's med centre to dig the bullet out from Judge Holmes they decide to continue their investigation into the other resi with known Nitro-9 experience, Tom Vampire and confront Nigel Faraway who is on stage at the brexit rally in the atrium.<br /><br /><h3>Interview with a Vampire </h3><br />Steele's intimidating gait parts the riotous assembly like a red hot hammer through synthi-butter.&nbsp; A master of public speaking, Faraway milks the opportunity for all it is worth before gesturing the Judges to meet him back stage. &nbsp; Steele gets straight to the point and asks Faraway what he knows about the High Explosive heist whose trail leads directly to this block.&nbsp; Faraway explains that this is a peaceful gathering and his motives are honest and true.&nbsp; Perhaps the Judges should investigate what's really going on and visit the real agent provacateurs in Merkel Mansions, Mitterand Habitat and Berlusconi Block.&nbsp; The Judes demand to interrogate Faraway's volunteer Tom Vampire.<br /><br />Faraway exits through the curtains and a few moments later Vampire emerges.&nbsp; A tall, thin 28 year old man dressed in an immaculate suit enters.&nbsp; Sweat beads across his bleached skin and drips from his top lip smearing the laughable drawn on pencil moustache he wears as an affectation.<br /><br />When questioned under birdie lie detector, Vampire testifies that his explosives knowledge comes from his first and only job 10 years ago when he was on a fatberg cleaning crew in the sewers.&nbsp; They used Nitro-9 to blow up the more stubborn blockages which set like plas-crete.&nbsp; His rap sheet is clean save for a jay walking incident 5 years ago.&nbsp; The lie detector barely registers off the 0 scale and a frustrated Steele tells Vampire that if he hears anything to call it into the sector house immediately.<br />Holmes puts in a call to Tech Judge Carson who informs them that they have recovered some partial DNA from the abandoned Judge uniforms and have MAC, the Justice Department's super computer cross matching it with Sector 55 residents.&nbsp; He estimates only a 1 in 5 chance of a positive match and it will take a couple of days for the program to finish running.&nbsp; Perhaps there is another way, her stoolie Vinny the Spiv might know something so she arranges to meet him after her shift ends at his regular haunt the "La Cuccaracha" bar in Jessica Alba Conapts.<br /><br /><h3>Destruction Derby on Meg-Way 5555</h3>With Nitro-9 leads drying up, recently graduated Psi-Judge Wallace advises that his instructors at The Academy used the mantra "If in doubt, roll out" meaning that they should mount up and look for trouble.&nbsp; As they gun their lawmasters an urgent call comes in for an escort duty from the spaceport.&nbsp; 45 minutes later they are talking to the Fidget Spinner World Series loadmaster Trevor Wombat.&nbsp; He has a problem, he is due at the omni dome in 2 hours for tech inspection and he has 7 heavy haulers each loaded up with 4 spinners waiting for an escort.&nbsp; Each of the spinners sits on the back of the loader, their armour plated, bladed and spiked shilouettes reminiscent of sleeping dinosaurs strapped down and covered with tarpaulin.&nbsp; The fans at the Omni Dome are in for a real destructive treat tonight.<br /><br />The convoy is a wide load and takes up 3 lanes as it heads out at a steady 80mph on Meg Way 55-55.&nbsp; Steele and Holmes are up front and Que and Wallace bring up the rear.&nbsp; The first few clicks go without incident until a slow driving Old Person in a white compact bubble car blocks their path.&nbsp; Holmes rides alongside and taps on the glass.&nbsp; The OP gips the wheel like her life depended on it and the sudden shock of a Judge demanding her to pull over makes her jerk the steering wheel in fright.&nbsp; The white compact fishtails wildy out of control and veers right before crashing into the guardrail.&nbsp; The car's safety foam pre-emptively triggers safely encapsulating the interior in a rigid shell.&nbsp; Holmes slaps a slow driving citation on the magled vehicle and chases after the convoy.<br /><br />Que spots that a strap has come loose on hauler 4 and orders Wombat to strap it down.&nbsp; A crewman emerges from a hatch in the cab and attempts to tighten the strap just as the truck rolls over a pothole.&nbsp; The jolt throws the hapless tech into the air and leaves him dangling from the strap inches from the road and the haulers huge tyres.&nbsp; Que quickly rides alongside and wrestles the tech onto the back of her lawmaster.<br /><br />Wallace drives expertly up to grip the crew ladder and orders his bike into auto mode.&nbsp; He climbs onto the bed of the truck and tightens the loose strap.&nbsp; As he finishes he gets another psychic vision.&nbsp; 3 perps are about to jump onto the convoy from the bridge ahead.<br /><br />The call comes too late for Steele as his bike thunders under the bridge but Que takes a well aimed longshot and hits one perp square in the center of mass and he falls backwards onto the bridge.&nbsp; The remaining perps leap.&nbsp; One lands on the cab of hauler 3 and rolls onto the flat bed, the second bounces off the bed and slams into the windscreen of hauler 4 before being crushed under its wheel like roadkill.&nbsp; Wallace scans the back of hauler 3 but can see no sign of the remaining perp.<br /><br />Steele side slips right and slows down to bring him alongside the truck.&nbsp; Even above the roadnoise and the rumbling drone of the heavy hauler he can hear the unmistakeable sound of a turbine spooling up.&nbsp; Suddenly the straps and tarpualin explode like confetti as the spinner tears off it's protective wrapping and careens sideways off the flat bed passing over the stunned Steele, shredding innocent motorists to pieces as it clears a path of destruction ahead.<br /><br />Steele pulls back to a safe distance, selects Armour Piercing rounds and fires a close knit burst at the spinners glass-steel canopy.&nbsp; The rounds bounce harmlessley off the glistening dome, these machines are not just common citi cars, they are built like tanks and designed to destroy each other.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-7_7Mo1vQ46g/WoAGFBPrCsI/AAAAAAAAFz4/Ck_dsIQZU-om0YjUDl5BZDdAzAcU2wp_gCLcBGAs/s1600/judge-dredd-fidget-spinner.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="579" data-original-width="1210" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-7_7Mo1vQ46g/WoAGFBPrCsI/AAAAAAAAFz4/Ck_dsIQZU-om0YjUDl5BZDdAzAcU2wp_gCLcBGAs/s320/judge-dredd-fidget-spinner.jpg" width="550" /></a></div>Antony Brothertonhttps://plus.google.com/107992636120077421391noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4684041688459097563.post-16532784109933316292018-02-04T18:41:00.001+00:002018-02-09T15:21:26.267+00:00Prog 2 - Super Duper Loops and Loopy DroopsHolmes, Steele and Wallace arrive at Super Duper Loop Plaza in Steve Jobs Block and join Judge Que and a full complement of Riot Squad manning the crowd barriers. &nbsp;The Super Duper Loop capsule is due in 10 minutes and the crowd is getting increasingly excited. &nbsp;The Judges witness minor offences being committed such as littering, but now is not the time to be diving into the crowd to make arrests, surveillance will follow those perps home cuff them in a safer more controllable environment.<br /><div><br /></div><div>Steele spots something in the foliage at the side of the plaza, a two foot height yellow rodent. &nbsp;When he pokes about in the bushes a male citizen wearing a trench coat emerges showing signs of emotional distress. &nbsp;Obviously a flasher, he struggles to resist his inner urges even when Steele points his lawgiver at him. &nbsp;He can't contain himself and flashes open his coat to reveal a blue leotard underneath. &nbsp;Out of the corner of his eye Steele spots a young civvo in a red cap enter the bushes and a little later a bright flash. &nbsp;Pushing the kook out of the way Steele investigates the undergrowth further but finds no sign of the boy or the yellow rodent.</div><div></div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-R78s0-iC2dk/WndTQKCUDHI/AAAAAAAAFzU/aZ-W5EoOpJMUhttOKbtMS1RHyp9AOe5wACLcBGAs/s1600/Judge-Dredd-Pikachu.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="320" data-original-width="320" height="200" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-R78s0-iC2dk/WndTQKCUDHI/AAAAAAAAFzU/aZ-W5EoOpJMUhttOKbtMS1RHyp9AOe5wACLcBGAs/s200/Judge-Dredd-Pikachu.png" width="200" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The 2 foot tall yellow rodent</td></tr></tbody></table>The unmistakable thwoppa thwoppa of a rotor drowns out the assembled crowd and the chopper of Super Duper Loop creator, Elon Deerscent, lands in the plaza just as the jumbotron counts down to zero and is replaced by a vid feed from inside the approaching capsule.<br /><div><br /></div><div>The faces of the celebrity citizens are barely recognisable as they contort in expressions of terror. &nbsp;Something is clearly amiss with this maiden voyage and further confirmation is received when the capsule shoots through the station at Mach 7.</div><div><br /></div><div>Deerscent immediately runs to the chopper signalling the pilot to spin up the blades. &nbsp;The Judges react, calling in a spray of riot foam from the nearby Riot Wagon which coats the tailboom of the chopper and sets hard as rockcrete.&nbsp; The chopper attempts to lift off and rips off its own tailboom. &nbsp;With its counter rotation device gone it corkscrews into the air violently throwing out Deerscent and the pilot before crashing down and exploding in the middle of the crowd.</div><div></div><div>Within seconds nearby med teams and a water cannon equipped H-Wagon quell the flames and begin treating the casualties. &nbsp;Holmes and Wallace rush to find the pilot unconscious on the ground. &nbsp;Steele and Que rush after Deerscent who has picked himself up and run into the bushes. &nbsp;Chasing him through the undergrowth they emerge to find him standing on the railing which marks the edge of the plaza. &nbsp;Deerscent tells Steele "no further or I'll jump". &nbsp;Steele continues to advance, trying to calm the situation down but the inventor jumps off the railing flipping him off with two extended middle digits. &nbsp;Rushing to the railing the Steele and Que see Deerscent thump his chest and bat wings extend from his arms to his legs. &nbsp;He rolls and flies off. </div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-n2OeQK0tECk/WndSFothDhI/AAAAAAAAFzI/dQy9rppY5poF9UEQ-JVL15LBNutKeO3nwCLcBGAs/s1600/judge-dredd-batter.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-n2OeQK0tECk/WndSFothDhI/AAAAAAAAFzI/dQy9rppY5poF9UEQ-JVL15LBNutKeO3nwCLcBGAs/s640/judge-dredd-batter.png" width="550" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Benny the Bat, a somewhat famous perp who used a Bat-suit to criminal effect</td></tr></tbody></table><div>Fishing out hypo rounds from his glove pouch Steele fires twice, narrowly missing him with both shots. &nbsp;Que is more successful and as Deerscent succumbs to the sedative he loses control slamming into the sloping windows of nearby Steve Woz block and sliding down into a park level which juts out of the side of the structure.</div><div><br /></div><div>Meanwhile Judges Holmes and Wallace have left the pilot in the capable hands of a medic and run over to the station complex. &nbsp;After relaying events to sector control Wallace tries to negotiate with the station bot who seems to be malfunctioning as he does not recognise the authority of the Judge and proceeds to seal the station behind plas-steel security walls which pop out of the ground. &nbsp;Wallace contacts the Super Duper Lopp Inc's customer centre and is eventually put through to the technical team who successfully cut the power bringing the capsule to a graceful stop.</div><div><br /></div><div>Steele and Que leap on their Lawmasters and drive off in the direction of Steve Woz block. &nbsp;When they arrive at the block park there is no sign of Deerscent save for a human shaped divot in the grass. &nbsp;Que routes the park surveillance vids to her bike computer and spins back to see Deerscent pick himself up and stagger off in the direction of the block's Med Centre. &nbsp;Soon after the heavily bandaged Deerscent is cuffed to a Med Centre gurney awaiting collection by a Pat Wagon. &nbsp;No doubt he will lawyer up, these rich citizens always think the law doesn't apply to them.</div><div><h3>Back to the Euro Zone </h3></div><div></div><div>The four judges regroup on 5527 heading towards Thatcher Towers and unfinished Nitro-9 business. &nbsp;</div><div><br /></div><div>Cross referencing all the registered residents with those who have explosives experience throws up 5 matches, 3 of which are already serving time in the iso-cubes.&nbsp; They request forensics backup which arrives shortly after in the shape of Judge Murtagh, a tech Judge with his Sniffer device specially calibrated to detect Nitro-9.</div><div><br /></div><div>Iona Skye lives at 202-47 a sweet old lady of 92 who serves up a great synthi -tea and tells the judges of the days of her youth after the apocalypse war when they drove this block across the destroyed Mega City along with others which survived the Sov Rad bombs to form what is now the Euro Zone.</div><div><br /></div><div>Tom Vampire 28 lives in a dingy apartment at 427-95. &nbsp;No one answers the door so the judges force entry and a scan of the filthy interior draws a blank save for a collection of pristine suits and a duffel bag of "Vote Nigel" badges stashed in the closet.</div><div><br /></div><div>Neither apartment tests positive on the Sniffer and the Judges seem to be running out of leads.&nbsp; Wallace decides to do some house to house enquiries and knocks on the door of 427-96. &nbsp;A juve punk answers the door and tells them that he saw the guy leave this morning whistling a happy tune.&nbsp; He doesn't know where he went but he's one of Nigel Faraways lackeys. &nbsp;The door closes and in hushed tones they hear two voices converse "Phew that was close", "Yeah they almost got us".</div><div><br /></div><div>Judge Que knocks on the door again, issuing a standard pre arrest declaration. &nbsp;Steele hears the unmistakable click of a stub gun being primed and thanks to his lightning reactions pushes Que out of the way as seconds later the door explodes in a shower of splinters and bullets.</div><div><br /></div><div>"BUDDA BUDDA BUDDA"</div>Antony Brothertonhttps://plus.google.com/107992636120077421391noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4684041688459097563.post-44927054224352877712018-01-28T09:52:00.002+00:002018-01-28T13:36:17.135+00:00Prog 1 - Another Day in Mega City One<p><b>A continuing series of session reports from my current Judge Dredd Game using Starblazer Adventures rules. </b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-stvHCUBe_fI/TxoYQ59JdTI/AAAAAAAAAw4/AuFPP6LTh3Ufpcb5S4toVOQGosVioAEyACPcBGAYYCw/s1600/Dave-Taylor-Big-Robots.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-stvHCUBe_fI/TxoYQ59JdTI/AAAAAAAAAw4/AuFPP6LTh3Ufpcb5S4toVOQGosVioAEyACPcBGAYYCw/s1600/Dave-Taylor-Big-Robots.jpg" title="Mega City One" width="550" /></a></div><h3>Sector House Briefing</h3><p>Another hot and sunny Wednesday afternoon's patrol in sector 55 begins with a briefing.&nbsp; Patrol Chief Belloch informs the assembled Judges that weather control has a ten minute shower programmed for 14:00 hours. &nbsp;Elon Deerscent is going to be unveiling the latest stretch of his super duper loop with a big ribbon cutting ceremony at the newly commissioned Loop Plaza near Steve Jobs Block. &nbsp;Lastly, Sector 55 is hosting the Fidget Spinner World Series later and expects a large number of competitiors&nbsp; and tourist fans to be targetted by the locals or causing trouble.</p><h3>Hitting the Megway</h3><p>Judges Holmes, Steele and Psi Judge Wallace mount up and head out to Loop Plaza on Meg 5535. As they approach the junction with 5527 the traffic has slowed to a crawl. &nbsp;An impromptu roadblock is in place manned by two Judges, White and Greene.&nbsp; Pleasantries are exchanged and the patrol takes the off-ramp for 5587 heading to Loop Plaza.</p><p>A few miles down the road Holmes suddenly realises that there was something wrong about those two judges. &nbsp;White's left knee pad was on upside down. &nbsp;She orders the patrol to do a swift 180 and ride back to the roadblock.</p><p>The two Judges are gone but their Lawmasters remain parked blocking the off ramp. &nbsp;Two civs in grey corporate security uniforms flag them down. &nbsp;They explain that the Judges requisitioned their truck and sped off towards the 5527 off-ramp. &nbsp;The guards are really concerned as they forgot to tell the Judges to be careful, their truck is loaded with Nitro9 explosives and any sudden impacts will set the explosive off.</p><p>This looks like a classic case of Jimping and Road Piracy, but the Lawmasters are real which means somewhere there are a pair of Judges in trouble or worse dead.&nbsp; The patrol soon finds a set of tyre marks &nbsp;at the side of the road which swerves off into the undergrowth. &nbsp;At the bottom of a short slope is an abandoned Fonda hatchback. &nbsp;Wallace gingerly lifts the tailgate to reveal Judges White and Green, stripped down to their regulation underwear, bound and gagged in the trunk.</p><p>When released, the Judges explain that they were investigating this abandoned vehicle when they were jumped from behind and knocked out. &nbsp;They didn't see their assailants and they woke up in the trunk of this car.</p><p>A message from Sector Control squawks over their helmet radios.&nbsp; They had a drone cam following the truck but it went into a through-way in Thatcher Towers and never came out. &nbsp;The judges head out to the block to investigate.</p><h3>Thatcher Towers in the Eurozone</h3><br /><p>Arriving at the through-way the truck is abandoned awkwardly on the side of the road its rear doors wide open and cargo gone. &nbsp;The only thing in the back of the truck are two piles of judges uniforms.&nbsp; A cursory scan of the through-way identifies at least 4 block vid cams which might have caught the perps in the act.&nbsp; They make their way to Thatcher Towers and enter the block at the level 250 atrium.</p><p>A demonstration is in full swing with a couple of thousand residents chanting about something called BREXIT.&nbsp; On a stage at the far end of the atrium stand a few well dressed citizens below banners emblazoned with the the slogans "Vote Nigel"&nbsp; "Vote Brexit". &nbsp;At the moment this seems like a peaceful gathering but the Judges' training and experience tells them that a situation like this can get ugly fast.</p><p>However, their immediate concern is a missing cargo of Nitro-9 and so they head to the Block Security Station.&nbsp; When they arrive it is in lockdown and after Steele shows his badge, the staff let them in.&nbsp; The watch officer Dun Can tells the Judges that they are an old pre Apocalypse War block and their CCTV system can't surveil every camera simultaneously.&nbsp; They don't have any footage from the cameras in the through-way as they are totally focussed on the rally in the atrium which has been going on for the last two weeks ever since Nigel Faraway was elected to the post of Citi-Def Block Commander.</p><p>Just as the Judges are about to wrap up their investigation, Chief Belloch shouts over the radio</br><br /><i>"Steele where are you?&nbsp;</i></p><p><i>You're supposed to be at Loop Plaza by now. &nbsp;Get your asses down there pronto!"</i></p>Antony Brothertonhttps://plus.google.com/107992636120077421391noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4684041688459097563.post-84964082723230866922017-04-05T22:11:00.003+01:002017-04-05T22:11:36.912+01:00Tested by the Elements - TLOD S07 E10<b>As she gasps for breath the catgirl Ai-Nyx is pulled out from under the hulking corpse of the Giant.&nbsp;&nbsp;</b><br /><br />Searching it's huge corpse Wulf finds a two handed sword the giant was using as a table knife and a bag containing some mixed coins.&nbsp; Our heroes lick their wounds, and press on to the Eagles Eerie.<br /><br /><h3>Are "Enemies" Electric?</h3><br />By noon they have made good progress trudging through the light snow and howling winds when suddenly the clouds darken and the air becomes still and heavy and.&nbsp; Lightning tears Argos the sky. And with a flash Tarigoz is hit by a bolt which bounces of his metal breastplate and coalesces into a crackling humanoid figure made of blue jittery light.<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dHsXWNay7UE/WOVch8B5XbI/AAAAAAAAFiQ/-cXvljxxdYI6IPeAxslZl6Oh02MJQiAtQCLcB/s1600/lightning-elemental.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dHsXWNay7UE/WOVch8B5XbI/AAAAAAAAFiQ/-cXvljxxdYI6IPeAxslZl6Oh02MJQiAtQCLcB/s1600/lightning-elemental.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://chalmerrelatorre.artstation.com/projects/1XPG8" rel="" target="_blank">Lightning Elemental</a> by Chalmer Relatorre</td></tr></tbody></table>Laurel is immediately reminded of the bedtime tales her Aeroimm Father used to recite to her about the strange elemental beings which inhabit the clouds.&nbsp; She recognises this as a lightning elemental of sorts.&nbsp; A force of nature with no evil intent, just primordial awareness.&nbsp; She waits to see what it does.<br /><br />However, Jan the Sell Sword knows nothing of elemental beings and strikes the creature with his magical sword Maraghbur, wounding it.<br /><br />The elemental flashes across the pass, seemingly attracted to Tarigoz's metal armour, flashes across the pass in an instant.&nbsp; In a dazzling show of lights, tendrils of electricity arc around the Knight and discharge with raucous barks.&nbsp; Ssinkar attempts to strike the creature with his wooden staff, Styx strikes with her sword but misses it and Nyx throws a javelin straight through it embedding itself in the cliffside.<br /><br />Tarigoz bashes the creature with his shield but the creature seems unperturbed.&nbsp; Wulf strikes at the creature with his newly acquired sword and is rewarded with sparks of crackling blue energy which run up the length of his blade and lick up his arms shocking him.<br /><br />Laurel grabs the peace stick which hangs from her belt.&nbsp; A strange foot long smooth black rod which terminates in 3 embedded glass rings which give off a faint glow.&nbsp; She swings at the creature but misses.<br /><br />Jan invokes Maraghbur to flame and strikes the creature carving off a chunk of crackling blue energy which dissipates.&nbsp; The creature retaliates blasting Tarigoz a hundred feet down the pass in a shower of blue flame and sparks. Styx strikes the elemental solidly with her sword and like wulf before her is rewarded with a shocking surge of energy which passes through her body singing her hair.<br /><br />Undeterred the Barbarian unleashes his primal fury and once again is rewarded with stinging pains throughout his whole body.&nbsp; Laurel hits the creature with her peace stick and with a bang, the elemental seems to shrink in size.&nbsp; Laurel's weapon grows strangely warm in her hand.<br /><br />Once again Jan brings down Marghbur's fiery vengeance down upon the elemental and the creature blast him with energy knocking the sword out of his hands and the mercenary back 60 feet into an unconscious heap.<br /><br />Styx picks up Maraghbur and the sword assaults her mind with the question "Who the Hell are You?" The Catgirl was not expecting this and is stunned.&nbsp; The barbarian rages on.&nbsp; Tarigoz picks himself up and charges headlong at the elemental hitting it squarely with his shield.&nbsp; Sparks fly off and around him as he pushes the creature back against the cliff.<br /><br />Laurel snatches Maraghbur from Styx's outstretched hand and hits the creature, her other hand swings around and stabs with the peace stick which once again emits a bang and the elemental is reduced in size.&nbsp; Styx grabs laurels Peace stick and hits the now child sized elemental with and it dissipates with crackle.&nbsp; Styx immediately drops the peace stick in the snow as it grows to hot to handle.&nbsp; A cloud of steam rises up and the snow is quickly reduced to a puddle of water which bubbles vigorously before evaporating.&nbsp; After a short while it cools and can be picked up again.<br /><br />Ikkarikka urges them on as the Eagles Eerie is not far.<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-lrzp0Nasgx4/WOVbONTdJSI/AAAAAAAAFiE/TCS7jvEIKdIS6GymoLUbAjtILfLx52MtQCLcB/s1600/giant-eagle.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-lrzp0Nasgx4/WOVbONTdJSI/AAAAAAAAFiE/TCS7jvEIKdIS6GymoLUbAjtILfLx52MtQCLcB/s1600/giant-eagle.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Giant Bird in Flight by <a href="http://artificialguy.deviantart.com/art/Giant-Bird-Fight-332120538" target="_blank">ArtificialGuy</a> on DeviantArt</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><h3>Entreating with Eagles</h3><br />A few hours later, as they approach the snow line of the mountain, they are buffetted by winds from above and a giant eagle lands on the ledge above them.&nbsp; The Eagle speaks to their minds directly asking them<br /><br /><blockquote>"Who are you and what brings you to Mount Durcas?"</blockquote><br /><br />Nyx explains their mission and recants the Arakocara shaman's vision.&nbsp; The Eagle tells them that the they have seen the dark clouds gathering and it concerns them.&nbsp; The tower of ice and the frozen lake is known to them.&nbsp; It is many days travel from here and they agree to take the party there.&nbsp; However, Ikkarikka must attend the council of Eagles.<br /><br />More Eagles swoop down from the clouds above and snatch up the heroes in their great talons.&nbsp; The journey to Mount Ederglow takes a few hours by Eagle and one by one they are deposited on a ledge outside a cave mouth.<br /><br /><table style="width: 100%;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: left;" width="50%"><a href="http://roleplay-geek.blogspot.co.uk/2017/03/get-knotted-tlod-s07-e09.html">&lt;-- Prev Episode</a></td><td style="text-align: right;" width="50%">Next Episode --&gt;</td></tr></tbody></table>Antony Brothertonhttps://plus.google.com/107992636120077421391noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4684041688459097563.post-42328168702983632292017-03-29T21:53:00.003+01:002017-04-05T22:12:13.574+01:00Get Knotted - TLOD S07 E09<b>Our Heroes rest the night at Tikka Ti-Jarra whilst the remaining Aarakocara pack their belongings for the journey to the last refuge at Tchichi-Kwaaka.</b>&nbsp; <br /><br />As dawn breaks they head off with their new guide Ikkarikka heading for the Eagles Eerie.&nbsp; They descend the mountain and into the valley and it is not long before they are once again climbing into the mountains and wending their way along the mountain road.<br /><br /><h3>Danger Round Every Bend </h3><br />As night begins to fall they find a shallow cave in which to shelter from the wind and the snow.&nbsp; Without firewood they huddle round the flaming sword Maraghbur.&nbsp; During the second watch Styx's hears gruff voices coming from above them.&nbsp; Maraghbur's dim flickering affords her keen vision enough light to pierce through the darkness and illuminate the faces of two Giants who have spotted the party from the ledge above.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-BoChh1ea3es/WNwdwRVehAI/AAAAAAAAFhw/gtX-YtnSRaAiWpNy4bXv484fxXX-lHX1wCLcB/s1600/two-giants.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-BoChh1ea3es/WNwdwRVehAI/AAAAAAAAFhw/gtX-YtnSRaAiWpNy4bXv484fxXX-lHX1wCLcB/s320/two-giants.jpg" width="550" /></a>&nbsp;</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Awesome Artwork by <a href="http://www.einarmartinsen.com/characters-creatures/">Einar Martinsen</a></div><br /><br />Returning to the group she wakes them all and describes the interlopers.&nbsp; Maraghbur is extinguished and in the darkness she listens to the pair hatch a plan to ambush the party as they traverse the pass in the morning.&nbsp; <br /><br />Forewarned is forearmed as they say, and the heroes hatch a cunning counter plan.&nbsp; Laurel, Styx and Nyx scale the 100 feet of steep but not sheer cliff which separates their ledge from that of the giants.&nbsp; They stealthily approach the now slumbering Giants and tie their bootlaces together before retreating up the pass and around the next bend.<br /><br />Before dawn Tarigoz leads the other half of the party along the pass around the switchback to within earshot of the still sleeping Giants.&nbsp; With a battlecry he leads the charge and in a simultaneous pincer movement Laurel and the two Phylus attack from the other side.<br /><br /><h3>Caught Flat Footed </h3><br />The Giants are quick to their feet but one stumbles and falls, its boots tied together by stout laces the thickness of good rope. Ssinkar recites a blessing as the combat ensues.&nbsp; Despite having the boon of Kriskar vested upon them both Tarigoz and Wulf's blows are found wanting whilst Jan envokes his firry blade and strikes solidly at the standing Giant who retaliates with his big club catching Wulf a mighty blow to the chest.&nbsp; <br /><br />Styx pounces on the fallen Giant and her sister swings at it with her nunchuks to no avail.&nbsp; Laurel catches it with one swipe of her scimitars slicing the creature a deep wound.&nbsp; <br /><br />Whilst Tarigoz's attack is parried away Ssinkar commands the standing Giant to Sleep.&nbsp; Offering no resistance the Giant is struck by both Wulf and Jan who open new deep wounds in the creatures flesh.<br /><br />Styx is roughly tossed aside as the second Giant lurches to its feet, Nyx stabs at the creature striking it in a vulnerable spot.&nbsp; Laurel strikes once again and both blades find their targets opening wicked wounds across the Giant's arms.<br /><br />Tarigoz lands a blow on his foe who stands as still as a rock under he Salamankari Clerics thrall.&nbsp; Ssinkar reiterates his command and regains control of the Giant.&nbsp; Jan plunges his fiery blade deep into the creatures belly.<br /><br /><h3>A Crushing Defeat </h3><br />Laurel once again deals a serious blow to the other Giant.&nbsp; Tarigoz finally despatches the enthralled enemy and it tumbles off the ledge and down the mountainside.&nbsp; Wulf critically injures the second Giant and Tarigoz finishes the job.&nbsp; The Giant teeters and totters before crumpling to the floor on top of Nyx.&nbsp; <br /><br /><br /><table style="width: 100%;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: left;" width="50%"><a href="http://roleplay-geek.blogspot.co.uk/2017/03/death-from-above-tlod-s07-e08.html">&lt;-- Prev Episode</a></td><td style="text-align: right;" width="50%"><a href="http://roleplay-geek.blogspot.co.uk/2017/04/tested-by-elements-tlod-s07-e10.html">Next Episode --&gt;</a></td></tr></tbody></table>Antony Brothertonhttps://plus.google.com/107992636120077421391noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4684041688459097563.post-28462528722198398282017-03-20T21:54:00.000+00:002017-03-29T21:59:09.950+01:00Death from Above - TLOD S07 E08<b>As the heroes caught their breath they could see that fighting had broken out on the amphitheatre ledges surrounding them.</b><br /><br />Laurel shot at a flying ape on one of the eastern ledges hitting it squarely in its back, Wulf followed suit with his longbow piercing another's bat like wing.&nbsp; Ssinkar rushed across the plateau towards Jan who had crashing to the ground like a meteor falling from the sky, landing on one of the ledges where a winged ape commander was overseeing the attack.<br /><br />Having slaughtered their initial Aarakocaran targets some of the winged apes swooped down to attack the heroes.&nbsp; Styx was soon engaged and struck at one with her short sword.&nbsp; With enemies closing in on her Laurel tossed aside her bow and drew her scimitars cutting down her nearest foe with a whirl of her wickedly sharp blades.&nbsp; Undeterred by losing&nbsp; his beloved sword, Wulf flicked his dagger out of its sheath flipping it between his hands as he chose his moment to strike, plunging the dagger into the winged ape's chest.&nbsp; Tcho'eh was set upon by another flying ape which clawed viciously at his scarred skin.&nbsp; Wulf's opponent was joined by another and both cut deep into the barbarian as they tried to overpower him.<br /><br /><br />Jan picked himself up only to find himself beset upon by a flying ape commander.&nbsp; The quick witted mercenary cried "Parr" and shot skywards from the melee like a cork from a bottle.&nbsp; <br /><br /><br />Across the field of battle Nyx whirled her three segment nunchuck staff at another winged ape striking it squarely in the shoulder.<br /><br /><br />With Jan gone, the winged ape commander leapt from the ledge and into melee with Ssinkar clawing at the Salamankari like a vicious beast.<br /><br /><br />Laurel engaged with a fresh enemy making a solid strike.&nbsp; With a holy word Ssinkar channeled a prayer of Hold Person on the commander freezing him to the spot.&nbsp; The creature attacking Tco'eh struck the birdman's beak and recoiled in pain at the shock of his hand hitting the hard keratin.&nbsp; Wulf's foes continued their assault on the Euborean raining a bevy of battering blows on top of him.&nbsp; Luck was not on Laurel's side as a strike from her enemy temporarily blinded her.&nbsp; Fortunately Tarigoz was close at hand and he leapt into the fray slaying the creature with a mighty blow worthy of a bard's tale.<br /><br /><br /><h3>Above the Clouds</h3><br />The sword Maragbhur pulled Jan screaming skywards, piercing the black cloud layer and emerging into clear bright sunlight.&nbsp; As he arced gracefully over in a backflip he could clearly see the minarets, turrets and battlements of a small castle floating atop the castle.&nbsp; Winged apes scuttled around the ramparts and flights of creatures assembled for yet more waves of attack. Just as quickly as he had emerged from the clouds he reentered their dark embrace to return to the fight below.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-INxKEvR5is4/WNA-OjEEgAI/AAAAAAAAFhM/xfw9cKBpE1cIkPZKs51rsp0B1Z8Hu0jOgCLcB/s1600/cloud-castle.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-INxKEvR5is4/WNA-OjEEgAI/AAAAAAAAFhM/xfw9cKBpE1cIkPZKs51rsp0B1Z8Hu0jOgCLcB/s1600/cloud-castle.jpg" /></a><a href="http://bancotovska.deviantart.com/art/floating-castle-284478190"><br />Floating Castle by Bancotovsk found on DeviantArt</a></div><br /><br /><br />Armed with one of Styx's short swords and the shield he scavenged from the Northern gatehouse tower at Fanjr, Tcho'eh pressed his attack and with more luck than skill lunged at his opponent lodging the point of his blade in the creatures eye socket.&nbsp; The top of the creatures head exploded in a mess of blood and brains as the Aarakocaran claimed his first kill.<br /><br /><br /><h3>The Temple of Tikka Ti-Jarra is Lost</h3><br />A huge explosion rocked the mountain top as a great bolt of lightning cracked from the heavens crushing the top of the temple like a spoon on an egg.&nbsp; Great chunks of what passed for Aarakocaran masonry rained down on the combatants below.<br /><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cfeDAqZjBnI/WM1v4AtghvI/AAAAAAAAFgs/N8GA359XvgU9X-71n0iDhuuLtr4wDHJUwCLcB/s1600/lightning.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cfeDAqZjBnI/WM1v4AtghvI/AAAAAAAAFgs/N8GA359XvgU9X-71n0iDhuuLtr4wDHJUwCLcB/s1600/lightning.jpg" /></a></div><br /><br />Blinded but unbroken, Laurel calmly waited for Tarigoz to lead her to the next enemy to be slain.<br /><br /><br />Blood filled Wulf's eyes as the rage swelled inside him.&nbsp; Armed only with the small dagger he u<br />sed to peel fruit he attacked the nearest winged ape who grabbed his wrist turning the blade against Wulf himself and the barbarian felt the blade slowly pierce his flesh.<br /><br /><br />The tide of battle was turning against the heroes as a winged ape flew in to protect its leader striking Ssinkar on the head and knocking him unconscious.&nbsp; Nyx's enemy struck her with a battering blow of its clawed fist.&nbsp; Wulf's rage was fading as one of two apes attacking him struck him across the face whipping his head from right to left, blood and sweat streamed from the barbarian as he fell to the floor vanquished.<br /><br /><br />A winged ape fresh from killing a family of bird people swooped down upon Tcho'eh and floored him with a single blow.&nbsp; Tarigoz turned towards the beast and ferociously swung at it with a strike worthy of a hero cutting the abomination in two.<br /><br /><br />Through clouded eyes Laurel stumbled over to the downed figure of Wulf in a desperate attempt to stop the creatures from attacking her fallen comrade, blindly flailing with her scimitars.<br /><br /><br />Meanwhile the Flight Leaders eyes could only blink as Jan's flaming sword struck his frozen body.&nbsp; The sell sword landed clumsily on the ledge a moment later.<br /><br /><br />Tarigoz ran to Styx's side to defend the plucky cat-girl as she boldly fended of an apes advances.&nbsp; She chipped away at its grubby grasping clawed hands.&nbsp; Laurel's sight cleared and she carved a chunk out of the ape who had felled her friend Wulf.&nbsp; <br /><br /><br />On the ledge, the effects of Ssinkars prayer waned and the Flight Leader's body sagged as control of his muscles returned.&nbsp; Jan struck him again in a blaze of fire and sparks.&nbsp; His attack left an opening for his enemy's subordinate to rain down a flurry of blows which battered the brave sell sword.<br /><br /><br />Laurel despatched her winged ape opponent and stood over the crumpled barbarian like a mother lion protecting wounded cub.&nbsp; The embattled Jan struck once more with his scorching sword and once again was rewarded with a howl of pain and anger from the flight leader.<br /><br /><br />A Horn Blast shook the heavens sounding the retreat for the flying apes and with a flap of their bat like wings they attempted to disengage.<br /><br /><br />As it leapt into the sky, Tarigoz cut down the creature he and Styx were engaged with.&nbsp; It's companion, who had been attacking her sister Nyx, managed to get one foot into the air, the other would never leave the ground as Styx severed it from the ape's leg with a swipe of her short sword.&nbsp; The creature screamed in pain as it clawed its way skywards , the ragged stump spraying a sticky blood trail on all below.&nbsp; The Flight Leader and its subordinate dove off the edge of the ledge and swooped into the air heading back to the safety of the ominous clouds above as they lazily drifted away from the destruction that they had wrought.<br /><br /><br /><h3>Aftermath and Interrogation </h3><br />Despite being near to death himself, Jan administered Ssinkar's healing draft to the Salamankari cleric, who swiftly returned to consciousness.&nbsp; He began to scour the amphitheatre, that had so abruptly been turned into a battlefield, for dying and injured to treat.&nbsp; Sadly only six male and four female Aarakocara had survived the Cloud Giant's wrath and so he stabilised Tcho'eh's wounds and then said a healing prayer over him.&nbsp; Life returned to the birdman with a sputter.&nbsp; Likewise Nyx who was also close to death received a healing prayer from Ssinkar.&nbsp; Laurel used her healing potion to revive Wulf.<br /><br /><br />The group helped the Aarakocara in their solemn task of collecting their dead together before turning their attentions to the sole surviving assailant who cowered under shadow of one of the ledges.&nbsp; The heroes attempted to communicate with the beast who could only retort with guttural animal howls grunts and whoops.&nbsp; Nyx thought that the creature might be trying to communicate with them but could only converse in his own tongue.&nbsp; Fortunately Ssinkar remembered that one of the scrolls he recently had acquired contained a prayer which would allow the creature to speak and understand them.&nbsp; As he read out the prayer the words on the page glowed and faded, crawling up his hand like a snake.&nbsp; The beast recoiled from the holy power and tried to escape.&nbsp; Nyx wrestled the creature to the ground and in the scuffle Ssinkar accidentally touched Nyx.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-aHxK-t5xnTw/WM1xTh_vHnI/AAAAAAAAFg4/Hu4hRQlKGn4oAjXmROQPmN9XYkoK5ajCwCLcB/s1600/mandrill.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-aHxK-t5xnTw/WM1xTh_vHnI/AAAAAAAAFg4/Hu4hRQlKGn4oAjXmROQPmN9XYkoK5ajCwCLcB/s1600/mandrill.jpg" /></a></div><br /><br /><br /><br />Suddenly the young Phylus could understand the creature and that it was demanding that the group kill it.&nbsp; <br /><br /><blockquote>"a Ba'atun without wings was as no Ba'atun at all!" cried the creature.</blockquote><br />Nyx questioned the creature and it blurted out that they would all suffer the wrath of his mistress the great magic user Yesork Pahyeh.&nbsp; No haven was safe and her cloud castle would return and her Cloud Giant plaything would wreak a vengeance upon all before she turned her attention to the ground dwellers.&nbsp; All would face a fate worse than death.<br /><br /><br />When the interrogation was over the Ba'atun pleaded once more for death and Jan obliged, clutching the creature around the waist he commanded the sword to lift them into the sky where he promptly dropped the wingless Ba'atun over the edge of the mountain promontory.<br /><br /><br />After a few hours the Shaman Kirraka emerged from the temple and told the group that he had consumed the seeds which allowed him access to the spirit world and he had had a vision.<br /><br /><br />The chosen would need to travel to the eerie of the giant eagles who would help them find an ice tower piercing a frozen lake and inside lay a silver sky fish which was critical to the defeat of the cloud giant.&nbsp; He excused Tcho'eh from this quest and instructed his most trusted underling shaman, Ikarrika, to guide them to the eagle's eerie.<br /><br /><table style="width: 100%;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: left;" width="50%"><a href="http://roleplay-geek.blogspot.co.uk/2017/03/fight-and-flight-tlod-s07-e07.html">&lt;-- Prev Episode</a></td><td style="text-align: right;" width="50%"><a href="http://roleplay-geek.blogspot.co.uk/2017/03/get-knotted-tlod-s07-e09.html">Next Episode --&gt;</a></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Antony Brothertonhttps://plus.google.com/107992636120077421391noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4684041688459097563.post-77885683976553034962017-03-19T20:57:00.000+00:002017-03-19T20:57:10.883+00:00Clarke's Third Law... Librarians Style<br /><b>Clarke's Third Law</b> is a popular trope amongst GMs particularly for those running Sci-Fi games and stems from this famous quote:<br /><br /><i>Arthur C Clarke</i><br /><blockquote><i>"Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic."</i></blockquote>You've seen examples of this in the movies include: <br /><ul><li><b>Star Trek Into Darkens</b> - When Kirk orders the Enterprise to move in order to save Spock, he breaks the prime directive by revealing the ship to the volcano worshipping Nibirans, who immediately begin worshipping the ship.<br /></li><li><b>Star Wars</b> - On seeing C3-P0 the primitive Ewoks believe him to be a physical manifestation of their long prophesied deity "The Golden One" and do his bidding.<br /></li><li><b>Apocalypse Now</b> - The primitive tribesmen are easily swayed by the imposing god-like Colonel Kurtz, and become followers of his own personal army/religion. </li></ul>However, in the <b>The Librarians</b> episode "<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt3813430/?ref_=ttep_ep7" target="_blank">And the Rule of Three</a>",&nbsp; writers <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0349935/">Paul Guyot</a> and <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0736966/?ref_=tt_ov_wr">John Rogers</a>&nbsp; flipped the trope around, making a magic spell indistinguishable from a mobile phone app.<br /><br />The central premise of the episode was that each time you played a wishing game on your phone you actually cast a wish fulfillment spell and were rewarded by things happening in the real world.&nbsp; This instant gratification becomes addictive, just like Candy Crush or Angry Birds.&nbsp; <br /><br /><h3>A Conceptual U-Turn </h3><br />This conceptual U-Turn opens up all sorts magical and supernatural possibilities for modern day games like <a href="https://www.yog-sothoth.com/wiki/index.php/Cthulhu_Now" target="_blank">Cthulhu Now</a>, <a href="http://www.shadowruntabletop.com/" target="_blank">Shadowrun</a> and <a href="http://cubicle7.co.uk/our-games/the-laundry/" target="_blank">The Laundry RPG</a> which take place in our current technology obsessed world.&nbsp; Even though we use these devices every day, very few of us really know how they operate, ie: at the machine code level, for all I know 4G might just be the fourth gate to Hell.&nbsp; Is it a coincidence that the Steve Jobs chose "Apple" as the name for his company?<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-FnAenQU3iH8/WJoziL60_yI/AAAAAAAAFLk/h9Qi4Yuj9Y8xSY0QXRT3l76iC1Vtrq-ygCLcB/s1600/stevejobs-wapple-poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-FnAenQU3iH8/WJoziL60_yI/AAAAAAAAFLk/h9Qi4Yuj9Y8xSY0QXRT3l76iC1Vtrq-ygCLcB/s320/stevejobs-wapple-poster.jpg" width="550" /></a></div><br /><br />We put a lot of trust in our tech, we don't really want to know how it works, just that it does.&nbsp; We are okay with that, our devices enrich our lives and make things easier (mostly).&nbsp;<br /><br />Our global IT Networks are central nervous system connecting us all together through our devices, much like the Ley Lines of myth, through nexus sites like Stone Henge.&nbsp; Why wouldn't modern mages piggyback this global telecoms network in some way, harvesting energy from the unsuspecting masses, or feeding energy into it or even just piggybacking on the signal.<br /><br /><h3>Arthur C Clarke - The Father of Global Telecomunications </h3>Arthur C Clarke died on this day in 2008 at the ripe old age of 90.&nbsp; Coincidentaly, Arthur C Clarke is most famous for inventing the concept of the geostationary orbit used by telecomunications satellites and underpins the whole shebang.&nbsp; Is it a coincidence... Antony Brothertonhttps://plus.google.com/107992636120077421391noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4684041688459097563.post-20117482937961753712017-03-14T21:40:00.001+00:002017-03-20T20:45:55.314+00:00Fight and Flight - TLOD S07 E07<b>Our heroes escape the mountain fortress that is Fanjr Way-Station leaving the ramshackle occupying force to fruitlessly search for them.</b><br /><br />Hurrying along the pass, as they turn a corner, Ssinkhar spies the silhouette of a lone figure standing in the road.&nbsp; As he Points and gesticulates to his friends the figure darts behind a large boulder.&nbsp; The cat girls Nyx and Styx immediately spring into action and bound into the shadows of the mountainside and stalk their new prey.<br /><br /><h3>The Madman on the Mountain </h3><br />As they pounce upon the boulder they briefly see a wild eyed human male dressed in shabby furs&nbsp; crouching behind it.&nbsp; Startled by the sudden appearance of the two Phylus the man suddenly shrieks and disappears with a pop.<br /><br />The rest of the party are immediately aware that someone is behind them, turning they briefly see the same shabby man clutching at an amulet with both hands.&nbsp; With a pop he disappears, reappearing some 100 ft further along the pass.&nbsp; Tarigoz boldy walks forward to engage the man in conversation but when he gets close to the fellow he once again vanishes to only reappear a second later in between the Knight and the rest of the party.&nbsp; The two cat girls get ready to pounce and the man blinks out of existence reappearing next to Ssinkar.&nbsp; With alacrity the Cleric strikes the man on the head with his staff and stuns him.<br /><br />When he comes to, he gives a madness filled rambling speech about white winged demons&nbsp; descending from black clouds.&nbsp; He struggles to his feet and as prances too and fro on the narrow pass, mimicking the demons in flight, swooping down on their targets with claws .<br /><br />"All dead, they're all dead now" he cries before launching himself over the edge of the cliff. <br /><br />The heroes continue along the pass until they find a shallow cave, little more than a depression in which they can see out the approaching night.<br /><br />Pairs of Watches are set and on the third, Laurel notices that they are being watched by a pair of eyes.&nbsp; Eventually the form of a mountain lion looms out of the night unaware that Laurel's natural night vision, the half elf knocks an arrow and shoots the cat in the side.&nbsp; It whelps and runs off.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-WuYhTumfWEc/WMhh7HLzZ1I/AAAAAAAAFgc/4lslqtjqHt00L8LBodEuziduh6OYKBtxgCLcB/s1600/mountain-lion.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-WuYhTumfWEc/WMhh7HLzZ1I/AAAAAAAAFgc/4lslqtjqHt00L8LBodEuziduh6OYKBtxgCLcB/s1600/mountain-lion.jpg" /></a>&nbsp;</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">A Mountain Lion</div><br /><br />In the morning, the snow which had fallen through the night had banked in drifts along the pass.&nbsp; The hungry heroes trudged on.&nbsp; Nyx caught a whiff of blood on the air and it was not long before they saw a solitary familiar arrow poking out of the snow.&nbsp; Scraping the snow away they discovered the corpse of the mountain lion Laurel had shot the night before.&nbsp; They butchered the animal and continued further down the pass until they found enough vegetation in order to build a small fire to cook the meat.<br /><br />Stomach's filled as best they could they set off down pass into the valley until they came to a fork in the road.&nbsp; A rudimentary sign points East towards the town of Melmond.&nbsp; They briefly contemplatea visit to the outpost town to gather supplies but Jan reminds them of the urgency of their mission.<br />The path to the left took them further into the mountains until they came to a steep sided gully between two towering cliff faces.<br /><br /><h3>Deadly Whirlwinds </h3><br />As they traversed the gully suddenly the wind picked up unnaturally and in front of them a spinning whirlwind appeared from nowhere and rushed towards them.&nbsp; Tcoh'eh, who was guiding the party from the front, leaps to the left pressing himself flat against the rocks.&nbsp; All but Jan followed suit and the sell sword was picked up by the tornado and flung violently up the gully to land in a crumbled heap of broken bones.<br /><br />Just as they recovered another even larger whirlwind came barrelling down the gully and Tcoh'eh flung himself to the right side of the gully and grabbed onto the cliff. &nbsp; The heroes followed suit but Styx and Wulf were tossed by the hurricane force winds and bashed against the unforgiving walls of the gully.&nbsp; As Ssinkar healed Jan and Wulf, Nyx administered her potion of healing to Styx.<br /><br />From the maelstrom descended at least a dozen or more Aarakocara, two of whom swooped down to pick up a protesting Tcoh'eh whilst the others hovered brandishing long ropes and sharp spears.<br /><br />A few seconds later they began their attack swooping low over the rag tag band of adventurers.&nbsp; A shrill shriek pierced the winds and one by one the heroes were lassoed and carried off into the clouds.<br /><br /><h3>The Temple of Tikka Ti-Jarra</h3><br />The heroes were deposited in what looked like a natural amphitheatre.&nbsp; A bowl like cluster of rocky outcroppings which served as terraces for the many Aarakocara who looked on with an equal mix of apprehension and hope.<br /><br />They were then led into a large egg shaped lattice structure from which lights sparkled and danced and presented to the Shaman of the nest, Kirrikaraka.&nbsp; The Shaman told them that his species were being systematically hunted down and their nests destroyed by a cloud giant with the assistance of some white winged creatures.&nbsp; He explained that they were poor by land dweller standards but they offered what little they had, presenting some jewels and a few potions.<br /><br />At that moment the bell suspended in the roof of the nest begins to ring and Aarakocara warriors shrieked<br /><br />"The cloud giant approaches"<br /><br />Rushing outside they immediately spotted that the skies were dominated by boiling black clouds.&nbsp; Suddenly several groups of winged creatures began to descend towards the amphitheatre and attack the Aarakocara who perched on the ledges.&nbsp; As the group neared the centre of the amphitheatre they were suddenly surrounded by one of these flights of winged creatures which resembled white baboons with great wings.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-kIipvHfsim8/WMhfZLiqpVI/AAAAAAAAFgQ/3GYJgGCMfCg6Blb8L_RSu0De-kPLhenSACLcB/s1600/baatun-flying-baboons.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-kIipvHfsim8/WMhfZLiqpVI/AAAAAAAAFgQ/3GYJgGCMfCg6Blb8L_RSu0De-kPLhenSACLcB/s1600/baatun-flying-baboons.jpg" /></a>&nbsp;</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Flying Ape miniature from <a href="https://footsoreminiatures.co.uk/">Footsore Miniatures</a></div><br /><h3>Great White Flying Apes&nbsp; </h3><br />Laurel lets fly an arrow, grazing one of the white whinged apes.&nbsp; Sinkar casts a hold person prayer on another.&nbsp; Tarigoz strikes one with his sword dealing serious damage at the same time Laurel switched to her scimitars dealing two light wounds to a second.<br /><br />Jan, who had singled out one of the leaders, used his flaming sword to good effect.&nbsp; With a mighty swing Wulf eviscerated his opponent and it crashed to the floor in a pool of blood and entrails.<br /><br />Laurel struck twice again at her enemy killing it.&nbsp; Plucky Nyx, managed a lucky strike on what was clearly some sort of commander knocking him prone.&nbsp; Jan continued to hack away with his flaming sword and was soon joined by Wulf.&nbsp; Ssinkar swung his staff at a third flying ape, knocking him unconscious.&nbsp; Wulf's foe retaliated and drew the barbarian's blood.<br /><br />Tarigoz finished off his protagonist whilst Laurel chose another target and struck twice more.&nbsp; Jan continued to press hiss attack, his flaming sword biting down on fur and feathers.&nbsp; Ssinkar's prayer wore off and he returned to finish off the creature.<br /><br />To prevent the unconscious creature from escaping Tarigoz chopped off its wings.&nbsp; Laurel struck her foe twice again killing it.&nbsp; as Wulf attacked his foe parried and with a crash of metal, Wulf's blade shattered.&nbsp; Ssinkar pressed his attack onto the lead creature.&nbsp; Sensing that the fight was lost the creatures fled.&nbsp; Jan struck his fleeing enemy in the back killing it.&nbsp; Nyx managed to graze the fleeing commander with her nunchucks as it peeled away.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mw94v_EsLK4/WMhVspAaYyI/AAAAAAAAFgA/M6dUH4y8GxE8asyOHEWZ76rqNoe2lAA-gCLcB/s1600/flying-sword.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mw94v_EsLK4/WMhVspAaYyI/AAAAAAAAFgA/M6dUH4y8GxE8asyOHEWZ76rqNoe2lAA-gCLcB/s1600/flying-sword.jpg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Jan does not look at all like Jet-Li with his flying flaming sword</div><br /><br />In his mind the sword Maragbhur said " after him son, Paar, Paar" the sell sword echoed the word and with a whoosh the sword pulled him off the ground into the air.&nbsp; Unaccustomed to flight Jan gripped the sword for his life and a brief dogfight ensued.<br /><br />The commander of the flying apes prevailed, striking Jan to the ground. &nbsp; &nbsp; <br /><br /><table style="width: 100%;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: left;" width="50%"><a href="http://roleplay-geek.blogspot.co.uk/2017/03/maragbhurs-pity-tlod-s07-e06.html">&lt;-- Prev Episode</a></td><td style="text-align: right;" width="50%"><a href="http://roleplay-geek.blogspot.co.uk/2017/03/death-from-above-tlod-s07-e08.html">Next Episode --&gt;</a></td></tr></tbody></table>Antony Brothertonhttps://plus.google.com/107992636120077421391noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4684041688459097563.post-70342240563954523012017-03-14T21:40:00.000+00:002017-03-14T21:40:37.008+00:00Maragbhur's Pity - TLOD S07 E06<b>It was clear to Ssinkar that their small band could never defeat the large and organised force which now occupied Fanyjr Way Station.&nbsp; They were going to have to use subterfuge and stealth to continue their journey to Tikka Ti-Jarra.&nbsp; They would also need to retrieve their guide Tcho'eh from the safety of the wagon and proceed on foot.</b><br /><br />Jan and Laurel volunteered to sneak through the great wooden gates and fetch the Aarakocara.&nbsp; <br /><br />In the ground floor room of the southern gatehouse tower, Ssinkar's prayer of silence finally wore off just as Jan , Laurel and Tco'eh returned.&nbsp; Jan bumped into the door with his shoulder as he entered and the door swung back on its hinges with a thump.<br /><br /><h3>The Jig is Up</h3><br /><blockquote>"What's going on down there" boomed the Ogre on the floor above.</blockquote><br />Ssinkar tried his best to make some bugbear noises but animal mimicry was not his forte.&nbsp; Suddenly one of the Gnolls in the watchtower exclaimed<br /><br /><blockquote>"Boss! Boss!There's a wagon on the pass."</blockquote><br />Realising that they were in danger of being discovered, the heroes quietly bundled down into the cellar bellow.&nbsp; Not a moment too soon, as they could hear the heavy steps of a Gnoll descending the sstone spiral staircase.&nbsp; A few seconds later the Gnoll caught a glimpse of the carnage that the party had wrought under cover of Ssinkar's zone of silence.<br /><br /><blockquote>"Boss! Boss! They're all dead Boss!&nbsp; The Troll, The Bugbears, All of them, dead!"</blockquote><br />The Ogre squeezed his imposing frame down the narrow staircase and immediately shouted <br /><br /><blockquote>"Alarm!, Alarm!, Ring the bell, we are under attack"</blockquote><br /><h3>The Perilous Passage</h3><br />Knowing that it would not be long before the enemy searched the cellar, the heroes hurried through the only exit available and down the tunnel which led North.&nbsp; A wise decision as not long after they heard the sounds of gnolls crashing about in the cellar.<br /><br />As they moved down the tunnel they noticed that it was clean and dry, the sturdy wooden posts and beams which held up the room were bleached an ashen grey and as they progressed further they discovered a pair of Gnoll skeletons lying face down on the floor their bones picked clean of flesh and bleached white. <br /><br />After a couple of hundred feet they stopped at a side passage which opened in the left wall.&nbsp; Styx cautiously approaches and looks and listens.&nbsp; She can see nothing but hears a soft slurping noise.&nbsp; Tarigoz waved his torch down the tunnel and seeing nothing declared it clear and proceeded to investigate.&nbsp; Boldly striding forward into the side passage he was suddenly engulfed by a Gelatinous Cube whose transparent flesh had been invisible in the dim light from his torch, which was promptly extinguished.&nbsp; He silently gasped for air as his body was lifted off the ground, floating inside the cube's jelly like flesh whilst his flesh began to slowly dissolve in the creatures acidic digestive juices.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-3CWsTu6LNao/UXmysjCzvqI/AAAAAAAADCU/62uaTBX6i5QRD7sbnS0uCgplVtqg6owJwCPcB/s1600/diy_gel_cube_8.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-3CWsTu6LNao/UXmysjCzvqI/AAAAAAAADCU/62uaTBX6i5QRD7sbnS0uCgplVtqg6owJwCPcB/s320/diy_gel_cube_8.png" width="550" /></a>&nbsp;</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Time to bust out my <a href="http://roleplay-geek.blogspot.co.uk/2013/04/diy-gelatinous-cube.html">DIY Gelatinous Cube Miniature</a></div>&nbsp;&nbsp; <br /><br />In the darkness Jan blindly slashed at the gelatinous wall in front of him, his blade slicing like a cold knife through butter, flicking globs of acidic flesh onto Nyx as he followed through.&nbsp; <br /><br />With the benefit of her night vision Styx rummaged around in her pack to find the slim box containing the three potions which she had found in the secret space in the fireplace of the Southern Gatehouse.&nbsp; Carefully uncorking the vial of poison she thrust her hand deep into the cube's interior and shook out the deadly strawberry flavoured liquid.&nbsp; In an instant, the creature reacted violently, enlarging in quivering and pulsating waves.&nbsp; It's flesh blistered and bubbled until after a few moments it exploded like an overripe melon showering the party in sticky acidic goo.&nbsp; Tarigoz writhed on the floor his skin and hair flaking off his body in crusty clumps.&nbsp; Styx's hand and lower arm were now similarly bald.<br /><br />Undeterred by their brush with the Gelationous Cube,&nbsp; they continued to explore fiddling a 30ft sq room beyond filled contaiing a meagre horde of Gnoll bones, some 60Gp worth of mixed coins, an acid scorched bone scroll tube and a bastard sword in a scabbard.&nbsp; Jan took the sword to replace his now damaged family heirloom.&nbsp; Drawing it, he discovered the fine blade was inscribed with two words, one on each side, "Zharr" &amp; "Parr".&nbsp; Ssinkar uncorked the bone scroll tube to find a scroll containing prayers of Restoration, Tongues,&nbsp; Cure Serious Wounds and Neutralize Poison.&nbsp; <br /><br />Returning to the main corridor they continue until it ends in a door much like the one at the southern end of the tunnel.&nbsp; Styx cautiously opened the door to find another cellar with a ladder on the left wall which went up to a trap door in the ceiling.&nbsp; <br /><br /><h3>The Northern Gatehouse</h3><br />Opening the trap door revealed a room constructed in an identical fashion to that of the Southern Gatehouse.&nbsp; This room had clearly been ransacked by the Way-Station's&nbsp; new occupants and Nyx could hear and smell a pack of Gnolls in the room above.&nbsp; Above their commotion could be heard the distant pealing of a bell.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-bL2ixoRkISk/WLvmhf9xnOI/AAAAAAAAFeo/8mCLCn5xlb0X6ZKmIN3XBe4OTclA19eBgCLcB/s1600/gnoll.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-bL2ixoRkISk/WLvmhf9xnOI/AAAAAAAAFeo/8mCLCn5xlb0X6ZKmIN3XBe4OTclA19eBgCLcB/s320/gnoll.jpg" width="550" /></a></div>A Female Gnoll found on Pinterest (If you are the artist please send me a credit link.)<br /><br /><br />On the first floor of the gatehouse tower, the leader issued his orders to his troops and the Gnolls filed out through the door onto the battlements of the Northern Gatehouse to investigate the alarm.&nbsp; <br /><br />Nyx bravely climbed the stone spiral staircase in the Northeast corner of the room onto the second floor and watched the Gnolls assembling on the battlements.&nbsp; Climbing back down to relay the information to her comrades and then returning to take up a closer position.&nbsp; By this time Wulf, had become tired of all this skulking about and urged his comrades to take up arms and fight.&nbsp; He hurriedly followed Nyx up the stairs.<br /><br />Tarigoz's training kicked in and he slowly opened the door which led into the large passageway through the fortified wall.&nbsp; His caution rewarded, as he spied four of the Gnolls rushing southward across the plateau towards the sound of the alarm bell.&nbsp; The odds were steadily becoming more favourable, leaving only 7 Gnolls atop the wall.&nbsp; <br /><br />Tcoh'eh answers the barbarians call and pleads to be given a weapon.&nbsp; Styx obliges, handing him one of her own short swords.&nbsp; The Aarakocra lifts down one of the round shields from the wall and calmly awaits orders.&nbsp; With his assistance they now outnumber the Gnolls.<br /><br />Favouring a pincer movement Tarigoz, Jan and Laurel crept out of the ground floor room, through the large archway heading for the stairs which lead up to the battlements, and hugging the southern wall as they went.&nbsp; Unfortunately stealth does not come naturally to a Knight of the 5th Legion and Tarigoz's armour scraped along the wall alerting the Gnolls to their presence.&nbsp; With the element of surprise gone the trio bolted for the stairs and Tarigoz and Jan engaged immediately with two Gnolls.&nbsp; <br /><br />As Jan drew his new found sword, he heard a voice in his head which said "Zharr, Zharr".&nbsp; Repeating the word in mid swing towards his enemy, he was stunned when red flames burst forth, flickering and licking along its length.&nbsp; The Gnoll he faced was equally stunned as pain shot across its face as the sword struck home.<br /><br />At exactly the same moment, Nyx darted out onto the battlements and with a hefty swing clubbed a Gnoll from behind wit her nunchucks.&nbsp; Wulf joined the fray, charging through the door and engaging in combat beside her, his two handed sword chopping deeply into another Gnoll's shoulder.&nbsp; Running up the stairs Styx can only throw a dagger through the open doorway at the same Gnoll fighting her sister.&nbsp; Unfortunately her rushed attack saw the blade glance off stonework and skitter to the floor.&nbsp; <br /><br />With her passage up the stairs blocked by the engaged warriors, Laurel scaled the cliff with expert prowess and leapt into the fray, her twin scimitars striking sparks as they glanced off the Gnoll leader's breastplate. <br /><br />Ssinkar moved onto the ramparts and swiftly envoked a blessing on all his comrades.<br /><br />Emboldened, Styx quaffed the potion of heroism and let onto the wall bounding along the crenelations as if they were rocks in a stream to land gracefully behind a Gnoll surprising it with a sword in the back. <br /><br />By the stairs Jan brought his flaming sword down once again on the Gnoll but with a flash of sparks his strike was repelled by the Gnoll's armour.&nbsp; The Gnoll retaliated immediately dealing him a stunning blow and Jan fell to the ground unconscious.&nbsp; Tarigoz and his target trade blows but not damage.<br /><br />Wulf continues to harry the Gnoll and they both trade blows, each drawing the other's blood.&nbsp; <br /><br />Laurel's scimitars strike the Gnoll Leader causing a serious wound but the Gnoll fight's on.&nbsp; Ssinkar moves into an offensive position beside Wulf and brings down the wrath of his goddess upon the Gnoll's head.&nbsp; The heavy bronze idol which tops his staff crushing the beasts skull like an egg spraying blood and brains everywhere.&nbsp; Nearby Nyx flashes her Nunchucks at her opponent finishing him off.&nbsp; Styx strikes with her short sword at her enemy whittling away at him.<br /><br />Wulf spies the leader in a battle with the Gnoll Leader and charges in with a horrific hack to the Gnoll's back just as a swipe from the beast takes Laurel by surprise and her scimitar flashes through the air o land on the stone floor of the battlements, her right hand still gripping the hilt.<br /><br />A lucky strike from Nyx's opponent lands square on her nose temporarily blinding her with pain.<br /><br />The now one-handed desert rider blocks out the pain from her severed hand and retaliates with her off handed scimitar further scarring the Gnoll leader, she was not done with him yet.<br /><br />Overreaching towards a new target Ssinkar dislocates his knee as he attacks and his weak strike falls short.&nbsp; Nyx continues to flail at her opponent bruising and battering the now bloodied creature.<br /><br />Laurel's strike is turned away by the Gnoll, but Wulf's strike finds an opening which ends the creatures life with a deathly howl.&nbsp; Two of the Gnolls leap over the southern wall and flee down the stairs.<br /><br />Ssinkar once again brings his goddess down on the head of the Gnoll facing Styx cracking open its skull and it collapses to the floor dead.&nbsp; Nyx finishes off her Gnoll and the Barbarian strikes a vicious blow at the last remaining Gnoll ending the battle in a geyser of blood.<br /><br />Ssinkar retrieves Laurel's hand and as he holds it against Laurel's shaking stump reads out the healing prayer from the scroll.&nbsp; One by one the words peel of the page and curl around the ranger's wrist reattaching bone and knitting sinew together.&nbsp; In moments Laurel's hand is reattached leaving a small circlet of words tattooed onto her wrist as a gentle reminder of the incident&nbsp;&nbsp; <br /><br />Tarigoz rummages around in Jan's pockets to find the healing potion which revivifies Jan.&nbsp; The sell sword awakes fully restored and as he picks up the now extinguished sword, he hears a haughty voice in his head<br /><br /><blockquote>"I don't know if I should laugh or cry…&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; …Maragbhur pities you!"</blockquote><table style="width: 100%;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: left;" width="50%"><a href="http://roleplay-geek.blogspot.co.uk/2017/02/curiosity-kills-cat-tlod-s07-e05.html">&lt;-- Prev Episode</a></td><td style="text-align: right;" width="50%"><a href="http://roleplay-geek.blogspot.co.uk/2017/03/fight-and-flight-tlod-s07-e07.html">Next Episode --&gt;</a></td></tr></tbody></table>Antony Brothertonhttps://plus.google.com/107992636120077421391noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4684041688459097563.post-89516097543709327052017-02-26T11:09:00.000+00:002017-03-05T10:34:39.880+00:00Curiosity Kills the Cat - TLOD S07 E05<b>Styx rushed into the ground floor of the tower, dodging the opportunistic flail of a Bugbear sword, as she moved into it's blind spot and stabbed it from behind. Her sister Nyx kept it busy from the front with her flailing 3 segment Nunchuck.</b><br /><br />From the safety of a shield wall of his friends Tarigoz and Laurel, Ssinkar commanded the Troll to "Sleep".<br /><br />The Troll, filled with awe and rapture complied, his eyes drooping and the fight leaving his bones. Tarigoz stabbed it in the gut with his longsword dealing a vicious blow. Laurel followed suit, her scimitars flashing in the light as they slashed at the awestruck Troll like a pair of scissors cutting cloth.<br /><br />Across the room, the lead Bugbear, slashed Wulf across his muscled torso parting skin and bone.&nbsp; The Euborean's blood sprayed wildly across the room as the battered Barbarian, beset on all sides, tried to hack at a second Bugbear.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-3JwcHIztFbQ/WLFzIGTlCOI/AAAAAAAAFb4/IVbE5RZAvzEtaBHcxIROVUCH0e3BG5IfQCLcB/s1600/b2-bugbear-fight.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-3JwcHIztFbQ/WLFzIGTlCOI/AAAAAAAAFb4/IVbE5RZAvzEtaBHcxIROVUCH0e3BG5IfQCLcB/s1600/b2-bugbear-fight.jpg" /></a></div><br /><br />As the Troll shrugged off the rapture, Ssinkar reaffirmed his Holy Command and the Troll's eyes drifted once again to the floor. Tarigoz over-extended himself and his swordthrust was turned away by the Troll's thick hide.<br /><br />The third Bugbear stabbed at Nyx and she fell to the ground in a crumpled pile of fur.&nbsp; The lead bugbear, sensing that the Barbarian was beaten, playfully nicked at Wulf with his Scimitar. Embattled and battered, Wulf called upon his primeval instincts and the rage welled up inside him.&nbsp; With a mighty downward swing of his two handed sword he cleaved the second Bugbear in two from stem to stern. <br /><br />Meanwhile Jan the Sell Sword dodged and parried every blow sent his way but his own swordplay was similarly unsuccessful.<br /><h3>Threats from ABove </h3>From the room above came a bellowing Ogreish roar <br /><br /><blockquote>"Will you lot stop fighting each other, If I have to come down there and talk to you again, I'll kill you all myself!"</blockquote><br />Fighting tears from her eyes, Styx stabbed aimlessly at the Bugbear which had killed her sister.<br /><br />Ssinkar knelt at the lifeless corpse of the young Phylus and rifled through her belongings until he found the potion of healing which Asdos had given each of them and forced it down Nyx's throat.&nbsp; The cat girl coughed and spluttered back to life as the magical concoction coursed through her body.<br /><br />Tarigoz slashed hopelessly at the now conscious and reinvigorated Troll which responded by punching him in the head with his huge fist. The blow knocked the Knight of Wulfschlossen for six leaving stars in his eyes and a fist shaped dent in his steel helmet.&nbsp; Laurel chose her moment wisely and stabbed the troll under the left arm with one of her scimitars.<br /><br />Fuelled by adrenaline and anger, Wulf hacked viciously at the lead Bugbear with Norse fury and the will to continue the fight left the Bugbear alongside copious amounts of blood.<br /><br />Concious of the noise that the battle was causing, Ssinkar invoked a zone of silence around himself encapsulating all in the room save for the softly sobbing Styx who was just happy that her sister was alive.<br /><br />In the hallowed silence of the Ssinkar's prayer, Tarigoz reacquired his focus and rained down a flurry of serious blows on the Troll who seemed to be shrugging off his earlier wounds.<br /><br />Meanwhile, the lead Bugbear felled Wulf with a desperate riposte as he wildly searched the room for an escape route.<br /><br />Outside the zone of silence all that could be heard was the creaking of her leather armour as Styx silently backstabbed the Bugbear in front of her and with a noiseless terrifying roar it collapsed on top of Jan.<br /><br /><blockquote>"That's better, now keep it down"</blockquote><br />bellowed the Ogre followed from the room above.<br /><br />The remaining Bugbear fed towards the spiral staircase in the North East corner of the tower dodging opportunistic attacks from Nyx's Nunchucks and Jan's nine-ringed sword.<br /><br />Ssinkar had silently moved around to engage the Troll and brought the full force of his staff, tipped with the heavy bronze tip carrying the likeness of his goddess, down upon the Troll's head. An expertly aimed swing of Tarigoz's sword parted the troll's head from its body and sent it sailing overhead and into a pile of detritus in the South East corner of the room.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WYR5fzjw_4s/WLFwm1RgqXI/AAAAAAAAFbs/8CD9M-KAftcWn9d1UzpA0eeq7VXyiOgDQCLcB/s1600/dead-troll.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WYR5fzjw_4s/WLFwm1RgqXI/AAAAAAAAFbs/8CD9M-KAftcWn9d1UzpA0eeq7VXyiOgDQCLcB/s1600/dead-troll.jpg" /></a>&nbsp;</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">A Dead Troll Base from Micro Art Studios</div><br />Laurel dropped her scimitars and an arrow flew across the room from her hastily drawn short bow bouncing off the stonework of the stairs. Jan swiftly extricated himself from under the corpse of the Bugbear and ran their fleeing leader through as he tried to climb the stairs. The fight was over.<br /><br />Under the cover of Ssinkar's zone of silence spell the party regrouped. Wulf's unconscious form was searched for his potion and he was quickly returned to health. Kicking the Troll's head aside, Nyx discovered a trap door in the floor. Tarigoz discovered a shield far finer than his own hanging in a display on the wall. Laurel investigated the fireplace, discovering a loose stone behind which was secreted a long wooden box with a finely fashioned lock. <br /><h3><br />Into the Cellar </h3><br />Opening the trapdoor revealed a set of wooden rungs set into the wall acting as a rudimentary ladder. The cat sisters descended into the darkness and discovered what was clearly a cellar stocked with some weapons. A single door was set into the North East corner of the room.<br /><br />Tarigoz climbed down and lit a torch, immediately moving over to the door and opened it. The torchlight illuminated a short 40ft section of the tunnel which was clearly manmade with sturdy props and beams to prevent it collapsing. His knowledge of siegeworks came to mind and he was reminded that fortified complexes, like the way-station, often had secret passages designed-in to them to allow defensive forces to retreat or reinforce from other buildings. However, Nyx's heightened sense of smell picked up the fetid odour of something long dead and decaying drifting down the corridor.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KWvQQ-ZnHOs/WLGgl82_BYI/AAAAAAAAFcQ/IIQAq9hp-3oirodntP9nHBRPdlt-SGWPwCLcB/s1600/tunnel.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KWvQQ-ZnHOs/WLGgl82_BYI/AAAAAAAAFcQ/IIQAq9hp-3oirodntP9nHBRPdlt-SGWPwCLcB/s1600/tunnel.jpg" /></a></div><br /><br />Above ground Laurel had pressed the other cat girl to try her thievery on the locked wooden box, which she excitedly agreed to. Pulling out her picks she stabbed and twisted at the keyhole and with a ping a poisoned needle jabbed out of the box pricking Styx's paw. She immediately fell to the floor with a swoon. Ssinkar who had been studying a pair of vellum scrolls rolled his eyes skyward to his Goddess and read out the words from one of the paragraphs. The ink on the page glowed briefly and then the text disappeared as did the look of pain and anguish on Styx's face. Using up Styx's potion of healing, the Phylus came to with one less life but having learned a valuable life lesson.<br /><br />Despite her curiosity having cost one of her nine lives, she was unbowed and with the trap neutralised she picked the lock revealling the box's contents.&nbsp; Her prize?<br /><br />Three small vials of liquid, a potion of poison, a potion of heroism and a mysterious white fluid which could not be identified.<br /><br /><table style="width: 100%px;"><tbody><tr><td><a href="https://roleplay-geek.blogspot.co.uk/2017/02/fanjyr-way-station-tlod-s07e04.html">&lt;-- Prev episode</a></td><td style="text-align: right;"><a href="http://roleplay-geek.blogspot.co.uk/2017/03/maragbhurs-pity-tlod-s07-e06.html">Next Episode --&gt;</a></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Antony Brothertonhttps://plus.google.com/107992636120077421391noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4684041688459097563.post-75539954656412964272017-02-18T15:46:00.000+00:002017-02-26T11:14:07.330+00:00Fanjyr Way-Station - TLOD S07E04<b>The funeral pyre did it's best to consume the bodies of the unfortunate traders and the fallen Aarakocra, but eventually succumbed to the snow which had begun to fall heavily overnight.&nbsp; The heroes took turns to stand 3 hour watches and slept through the long cold night. </b><br /><br />In the morning they patched up their horses and themselves as best they could, hitched up the functioning wagon and headed on up the pass.&nbsp; Just after noon Laurel spotted a rider approaching through the snow accompanied by a dog.&nbsp; Cautiously Sir Tarigoz engaged the figure in polite conversation as is the custom when travellers meet together on a single track road.<br /><blockquote><b>"Lode Burwell is my name, and I am headed to Lurneslye with a consignment of furs for Frederick's General Store.&nbsp; This is my companion and friend Bob"</b></blockquote>he said pointing at the large dog which loped alongside him. &nbsp; <br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-rakJjs4X5Oc/WKhU8Okm5qI/AAAAAAAAFao/GrRRt52kmc0bdZUFhQ0NvdMpuq3lVBtJQCLcB/s1600/Lode-Burwell.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-rakJjs4X5Oc/WKhU8Okm5qI/AAAAAAAAFao/GrRRt52kmc0bdZUFhQ0NvdMpuq3lVBtJQCLcB/s1600/Lode-Burwell.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Lode Burwell - Fur Trader</b></td></tr></tbody></table>Lode told the heroes that a day ago he had passed through the gates of Fanjyr Way-Station, a fortified respite for weary travellers, further back along this mountain pass.&nbsp; The place was abandoned and it looked like it had been attacked.&nbsp; No stranger to war, as he was a travelling mercenary in his younger days, he reckoned that a sizeable force had laid waste to the shrine, inn and stables.&nbsp; The gatehouses were undamaged and abandoned by the small militia garrisoned there.&nbsp; The southern gates had been left wide open. <br /><br />Tarigoz warned the trader that they had encountered an ambushed trader caravan earlier in their journey from Lurneslye from where they had acquired the wagon.&nbsp; Lode explained that he knew the owner of the wagon and his family as they had left the town of Melmond some two days before him.&nbsp; Had Tarigoz not been a Knight of the 5th Legion Lode said he would have immediately taken him for a bandit and a murderer and they would be having this conversation at sworpoint.&nbsp; He added that should the party make it to Melmond they should return the wagon to the remaining members of the Feinholtz family.&nbsp; As the trader and heroes parted company the Lode muttered that<br /><blockquote><b>"There is something foul and disturbing in the dark clouds which have descended on these mountains this winter."</b></blockquote><br />They spent the remainder of the daylight slogging through ever deepening snow until they stopped at at a passing place cut into the mountainside and spent a frigid night huddled together for warmth in the back of the wagon.<br /><br />In the morning they pressed on against the wind and driving snow.&nbsp; After two hours they caught their first glimpse of Fanjyr Way-Station through the low coud which hugged the mountainside.&nbsp; Another two hours later as they wound their way along the pass, the imposing structure of the Southern Gatehouse hove into view.<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-y3jWGwdMLm4/WKhVMMTftNI/AAAAAAAAFas/B04CPP7NS8QCTWw6RdcVxGPFv_JEBWhpACLcB/s1600/fanjr-Way-Station-3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-y3jWGwdMLm4/WKhVMMTftNI/AAAAAAAAFas/B04CPP7NS8QCTWw6RdcVxGPFv_JEBWhpACLcB/s1600/fanjr-Way-Station-3.jpg" width="550" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Southern Gatehouse of Fanjyr Way-Sattion</td></tr></tbody></table>The acrid smell of burnt timber hung in the air and it was obvious to all from the firmly barred gate that this way-station was now very much occupied.&nbsp; The question was by who or what? <br /><br />Leaving the horses and wagon containing Tcho'he the Aarakocra on the pass behind them, the heroes split into two groups. <br /><div><br /></div><div>Nyx, Styx, Laurel and Jan chose to scale the jagged rocks of the mountain side and cross over the wall.&nbsp; Tarigoz, Ssinkar and Wulf chose to make their way to the great wooden doors.</div><div><br /></div><div>With rogueish nimbleness Styx darted swiftly up the cliff face and crept up to the battlements.&nbsp; Her heightened sense of smell immediately picked out the distinct odour of four different species of creatures in the vicinity; the musky aroma of Bugbear, the wet dog smell of Gnoll, the reek of Ogre and the stench of Troll. &nbsp;Using her Thieves Cant, she signalled her sister Nyx a message to warn the other group. &nbsp;Nix quickly relayed this as best she could to the Cantless Jan by waving her hands wildly.&nbsp; The young mercenary got the gist of the message ran over to relay it to Tarigoz who was already half way to the gatehouse doors.</div><div><br /></div>Accompanied by her sister and Laurel, the trio stealthily made their way across the wall and down the flight of stairs leading into a great courtyard.&nbsp; Twisted spires of black smoke still rose from the ruins of three buildings that they could see in the courtyard.&nbsp; <br /><br /><div>Jan the Sell Sword shinned up the mountain slope and like a ghost silently crossed over the wall.&nbsp; Just as he was about to descend the stairs he noticed the door to the middle floor of the tower open and a Gnoll casually walked out and over to the ramparts directly above the gate.&nbsp; He stopped and fiddling with his leather armour then began to urinate over the edge.</div><div><br /></div><div>Ssinkar narrowly avoided the stream of fresh nicturate from above and he hunkered against the huge wooden doors. Tarigoz and Wulf followed suit.&nbsp; They three heard the Gnoll finish his ablutions with a sigh and return to the tower closing the door noisily.</div><div><br /></div><div>With their catlike poise and grace the two rogues stealthily padded into the tunnel and despite their lithe frames, proceeded to lift the 10 foot long heavy wooden bar which secured the 15 foot tall wooden doors from the inside.&nbsp; Nyx searched through her trinket bag and found a squat shiny small metal jar containing some lavender scented greasy cream, which she had purloined some time ago from some nameless merchant's mistress, and greased the doors hinges.&nbsp; Ssinkar gingerly pushed the door open just enugh for each of them to slip through and joined the fousome in the tunnel.<br /><br />Inside the tunnel was a pair of double doors which led to the ground floor of the tower, one of which was slightly ajar.&nbsp; Through this could be heard the unmistakeable grunts of a Troll and the suffling of at least 3 Bugbears.&nbsp;&nbsp;</div><br /><table><tbody><tr><td><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PiiOdEd1GnQ/WKhoylYnCeI/AAAAAAAAFbA/L6PPfn1kIccL0oXW0uBOkOppu5dPDW9fACLcB/s1600/HillTroll.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PiiOdEd1GnQ/WKhoylYnCeI/AAAAAAAAFbA/L6PPfn1kIccL0oXW0uBOkOppu5dPDW9fACLcB/s320/HillTroll.jpg" width="282" /></a></div></td><td><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-5DWV_PR1ewQ/WKhoym12hpI/AAAAAAAAFa8/e6tjwf_9y9YG7IHIFdhflyUtMNtr0cPLQCEw/s1600/Bugbear.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-5DWV_PR1ewQ/WKhoym12hpI/AAAAAAAAFa8/e6tjwf_9y9YG7IHIFdhflyUtMNtr0cPLQCEw/s320/Bugbear.jpg" width="282" /></a></div></td></tr><tr><td style="text-align: center;">Hill Troll</td><td style="text-align: center;">Bugbear</td></tr></tbody></table><br />Despite his years of training in skirmish tactics, Sir Tarigoz could see only one way to deal with this.<br />Bursting through the doors he caught the four creatures by surprise and immediately engaged with the huge troll swinging wildly and missing.&nbsp; The Barbarian Wulf Brundson followed suit and hurled himself into the battle against the strongest looking Bugbear.&nbsp; Laurel darted through and a furious flurry of her scimitars sliced at the Troll drawing blood.&nbsp; Jan also engaged hacking at the second Bugbear with his sword.<br /><br /><table style="width: 100%px;"><tbody><tr><td><a href="https://roleplay-geek.blogspot.co.uk/2017/02/into-mountains.html">&lt;-- Prev episode</a></td><td style="text-align: right;"><a href="https://roleplay-geek.blogspot.co.uk/2017/02/curiosity-kills-cat-tlod-s07-e05.html">Next Episode --&gt;</a></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Antony Brothertonhttps://plus.google.com/107992636120077421391noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4684041688459097563.post-27626450326996095442017-02-15T09:00:00.000+00:002017-02-25T11:43:06.440+00:00Where have all the Cat People Gone?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>The new group of characters going through the mill that is my campaign world <a href="https://sites.google.com/site/thelandsofdual/sessions/season-7" target="_blank">The Lands of Dual</a> contain two female Phylus, aka "Nyx and Styx the chicks from Xix."<br /><br />I would love to find some miniatures to help the other players to visualise this loveable pair of rogues&nbsp; but it seems like cat people are out of vogue.<br /><br /><h2>Inspirational Images</h2><br /><table><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1DZbJJaMvu4/WJpEjniHRMI/AAAAAAAAFL0/hGxpyfK0B1UND7F3Pc97r1vphdMDeEjewCLcB/s1600/wilykit-wilykat.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1DZbJJaMvu4/WJpEjniHRMI/AAAAAAAAFL0/hGxpyfK0B1UND7F3Pc97r1vphdMDeEjewCLcB/s200/wilykit-wilykat.JPG" width="225" /></a></td> <td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-DzbKjw1EvIs/WJpGJMpTEbI/AAAAAAAAFMA/3ldwyFjj5DQuBABalFEPDyULqF7RmJbDQCLcB/s1600/Puma-Sisters-Dominion-Tank-Police.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-DzbKjw1EvIs/WJpGJMpTEbI/AAAAAAAAFMA/3ldwyFjj5DQuBABalFEPDyULqF7RmJbDQCLcB/s200/Puma-Sisters-Dominion-Tank-Police.jpg" width="225" /></a></td> </tr><tr> <td style="text-align: center;">Wilykit &amp; Wilykat<br />from Thundercats</td> <td style="text-align: center;">AniPuma and UniPuma <br />from Dominion Tank Police</td> </tr><tr> <td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-BeEAFW7PTOA/WJpInoGLOtI/AAAAAAAAFMQ/Hgxh5KfScY8LB8i795dpehagNEC-YnqLgCLcB/s1600/nukunuku.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-BeEAFW7PTOA/WJpInoGLOtI/AAAAAAAAFMQ/Hgxh5KfScY8LB8i795dpehagNEC-YnqLgCLcB/s200/nukunuku.jpg" width="225" /></a></td> <td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sWzloyt3Lt8/WJpKR9LLpeI/AAAAAAAAFMg/RssTIMUhY2QplCPNqYoR8Wrf0SsVR6TEACLcB/s1600/aisha-clanclan-outlawstar.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sWzloyt3Lt8/WJpKR9LLpeI/AAAAAAAAFMg/RssTIMUhY2QplCPNqYoR8Wrf0SsVR6TEACLcB/s320/aisha-clanclan-outlawstar.jpg" width="225" /></a></td> </tr><tr> <td style="text-align: center;">All Purpose Cultural <br />Cat Girl Nuku Nuku</td> <td style="text-align: center;">Aisha ClanClan the Ctarl-Ctarl<br />&nbsp;from Outlaw-Star</td> </tr></tbody></table><br /><br /><h2>The Miniature Possibilities</h2><h3>D&amp;D/Pathfinder Minis</h3><br /><table><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8c78h9Yyt0w/WKDYuf4CDOI/AAAAAAAAFZI/Z1rF6zo1rVQD-5HY7n9XZc-HXfpfssf5gCLcB/s1600/01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8c78h9Yyt0w/WKDYuf4CDOI/AAAAAAAAFZI/Z1rF6zo1rVQD-5HY7n9XZc-HXfpfssf5gCLcB/s320/01.jpg" width="197" /></a></div></td> <td style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-UtxMcl3CbKU/WKDYuUwUMhI/AAAAAAAAFZA/DTnmnxzhkmw-C580WI8Ge6Ml5L0-0rI1QCEw/s1600/02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-UtxMcl3CbKU/WKDYuUwUMhI/AAAAAAAAFZA/DTnmnxzhkmw-C580WI8Ge6Ml5L0-0rI1QCEw/s320/02.jpg" width="197" /></a></div></td> </tr><tr> <td style="text-align: center;"><div class="lvtitle"><a class="vip" href="http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Catfolk-Rogue-Shattered-Star-18-Pathfinder-Battles-D-D-Miniature-/361893083420?hash=item544282391c:g:nWIAAMXQgb1RU3xB" title="Click this link to access Catfolk Rogue - Shattered Star #18 Pathfinder Battles D&amp;D Miniature">Catfolk Rogue - Shattered Star #18 <br />Pathfinder Battles</a></div></td> <td style="text-align: center;"><div class="it-ttl" id="itemTitle" itemprop="name">Dungeons &amp; Dragons Miniature: <br />Archfiends 11-60 Catfolk</div></td> </tr></tbody></table><br /><h3>Darksword Miniatures Critter Kingdoms</h3>More anthropomorpic than I would prefer and better suited to a game like Mouseguard.<br /><table><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-bmNTbhLMDdo/WKDYuz4cUdI/AAAAAAAAFZU/9KDHpiQi-EciO4mR3zebUOgBTyd87GXtQCEw/s1600/06.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-bmNTbhLMDdo/WKDYuz4cUdI/AAAAAAAAFZU/9KDHpiQi-EciO4mR3zebUOgBTyd87GXtQCEw/s320/06.jpg" width="197" /></a></div></td> <td style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mYpFdCD5HMo/WKDb0E-0ZWI/AAAAAAAAFZ4/Zl1CKVDVBI08XNa3yqJEZdfwmVlbCqFGwCEw/s1600/10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mYpFdCD5HMo/WKDb0E-0ZWI/AAAAAAAAFZ4/Zl1CKVDVBI08XNa3yqJEZdfwmVlbCqFGwCEw/s320/10.jpg" width="197" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div></td> </tr><tr> <td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.darkswordminiatures.com/shop/index.php/miniatures/visions-in-fantasy-critters/ella-cat-rogue.html" target="_blank">Ella Cat Rogue</a></td> <td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.darkswordminiatures.com/shop/index.php/miniatures/visions-in-fantasy-critters/black-cat-avenging-thief.html" target="_blank">Black Cat Avenging Thief</a></td> </tr></tbody></table><br /><h3>Reaper Miniatures </h3><table><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Ga_kALmkfE8/WKDYuf0eUOI/AAAAAAAAFZs/YoKaQScFavkCkaw4WTdxMw7vtl_Urb67QCEw/s1600/03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Ga_kALmkfE8/WKDYuf0eUOI/AAAAAAAAFZs/YoKaQScFavkCkaw4WTdxMw7vtl_Urb67QCEw/s320/03.jpg" width="197" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div></td> <td style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-BpxZTT073Os/WKDYuur8nQI/AAAAAAAAFZs/ywdH6lzq1sYayUN0SsnQooci4NWvRsjbwCEw/s1600/04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-BpxZTT073Os/WKDYuur8nQI/AAAAAAAAFZs/ywdH6lzq1sYayUN0SsnQooci4NWvRsjbwCEw/s320/04.jpg" width="197" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div></td> </tr><tr> <td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.reapermini.com/FigureFinder#detail/02910" target="_blank">Cheetah Girl</a></td> <td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.reapermini.com/FigureFinder#detail/02575" target="_blank">Cleo, Weretigress</a></td> </tr><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-DGAF_IkMes4/WKDYuzIjfjI/AAAAAAAAFZs/Td_yhIcwEBcBtegMXrXX3X9ewAe2eldpACEw/s1600/07.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-DGAF_IkMes4/WKDYuzIjfjI/AAAAAAAAFZs/Td_yhIcwEBcBtegMXrXX3X9ewAe2eldpACEw/s320/07.jpg" width="197" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div></td> <td style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-gUjutUAtZjg/WKDYvNFDPGI/AAAAAAAAFZs/eLrYJg5Er3I70v0dUAQVA-UI2E-lGSZKwCEw/s1600/09.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-gUjutUAtZjg/WKDYvNFDPGI/AAAAAAAAFZs/eLrYJg5Er3I70v0dUAQVA-UI2E-lGSZKwCEw/s320/09.jpg" width="197" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div></td> </tr><tr> <td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.reapermini.com/OnlineStore/cat%20girl/latest/50095" target="_blank">Kyoko Silvers Cat Girl</a></td> <td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.reapermini.com/FigureFinder#detail/03478" target="_blank">Tawny Firehair, Cat Girl</a></td> </tr></tbody></table><br /><h3>Alkemy (Alchemist) Miniatures</h3>Beautiful sculpts and purrfect for the Al-Quadim inspired setting of Sankahar in my campaign world The Lands of Dual.<br /><br /><table><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-cMbgzV9N3T8/WKDYugATz7I/AAAAAAAAFZs/TRyUqSNHk6wugHR25owhupZ5_sSe_nNpACEw/s1600/05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-cMbgzV9N3T8/WKDYugATz7I/AAAAAAAAFZs/TRyUqSNHk6wugHR25owhupZ5_sSe_nNpACEw/s320/05.jpg" width="197" /></a></div></td> <td style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-JcoN_inkkjQ/WKFjd19ZggI/AAAAAAAAFaY/Hj2mj3YcPSsG8UpV3tSznpENIXa6gR9ywCLcB/s1600/13.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-JcoN_inkkjQ/WKFjd19ZggI/AAAAAAAAFaY/Hj2mj3YcPSsG8UpV3tSznpENIXa6gR9ywCLcB/s320/13.jpg" width="196" /></a></div></td> </tr><tr> <td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://alkemy-the-game.com/shop/product.php?id_product=53" target="_blank">Dahlia ibn Malikh</a></td> <td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://alkemy-the-game.com/shop/product.php?id_product=48" target="_blank">Iëcha bint Sorhna</a></td> </tr></tbody></table><br /><h3>Crocodile Games - War Gods of Aegyptus (Basti)</h3><br />I have to mention the Crocodile Games Basti miniatures, unfortunately the vast majority of the femle characters are a bit too NSFW for my tastes, but this pair of Basti skirmishers would work... just<br /><br /><table><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-1zfhonZrX5Y/WKDYvCvMOEI/AAAAAAAAFZs/OwZODRrCYzwC9grm7v1qJVMoOamxw3K1gCEw/s1600/11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-1zfhonZrX5Y/WKDYvCvMOEI/AAAAAAAAFZs/OwZODRrCYzwC9grm7v1qJVMoOamxw3K1gCEw/s320/11.jpg" width="196" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div></td> <td style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-VS9WRIMDZ0w/WKDYvXeSbPI/AAAAAAAAFZ0/54JyJ_h5WSs30ms0IeUuqZizOwsQfRaKACEw/s1600/12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-VS9WRIMDZ0w/WKDYvXeSbPI/AAAAAAAAFZ0/54JyJ_h5WSs30ms0IeUuqZizOwsQfRaKACEw/s320/12.jpg" width="196" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div></td> </tr><tr> <td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.crocodilegames.com/store/itemDetail.cfm?prodID=124&amp;catID=21" target="_blank">Basti Skirmisher WGE-013d</a></td> <td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.crocodilegames.com/store/itemDetail.cfm?prodID=125&amp;catID=21" target="_blank">Basti Skirmisher WGE-013e</a></td> </tr></tbody></table><br /><h3>Eureka Miniatures - Update</h3><span style="font-weight: normal;">Thanks to reader Andrew who discovered these anatomically correct six breasted Bastet Cat Women Warriors from <a href="http://eurekamin.com.au/">Eureka Miniatures</a> Chaos Egyptian Range.&nbsp; Eureka are based in far flung Australia but fortunately these can also be ordered from <a href="http://www.fighting15sshop.co.uk/chaos-egyptians-116-c.asp">Fighting15s</a> in the UK.</span><br /><span style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-iUP8T4M3g9Y/WLFr6RKGDaI/AAAAAAAAFbg/GfKd4ToBKrYF-itemgfWutonC9u_5GGuQCLcB/s1600/eureka-miniatures-bastet.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-iUP8T4M3g9Y/WLFr6RKGDaI/AAAAAAAAFbg/GfKd4ToBKrYF-itemgfWutonC9u_5GGuQCLcB/s1600/eureka-miniatures-bastet.jpg" /></a></div><h3>Call to Action</h3>If anyone out there knows of any fantasy catgirl miniature makers please leave details in the comments below.&nbsp; I don't want to have to unleash <a href="http://www.reapermini.com/FigureFinder#detail/50235" target="_blank">Edna, the Crazy Cat Lady</a> on my players!!<br /><h3> </h3><h3></h3><h3></h3><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pkh_9n2c7gg/WKDYu1hWBSI/AAAAAAAAFZs/63mGhZGR2Dkb9hxZlAIOUo4cQbq7rcewACEw/s1600/08.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pkh_9n2c7gg/WKDYu1hWBSI/AAAAAAAAFZs/63mGhZGR2Dkb9hxZlAIOUo4cQbq7rcewACEw/s320/08.jpg" width="197" /></a></div><h3></h3><h3></h3><h3></h3><h3></h3>Antony Brothertonhttps://plus.google.com/107992636120077421391noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4684041688459097563.post-18082482541540756882017-02-13T09:00:00.000+00:002017-02-13T09:00:13.568+00:00DGT Cube - A Solution for Slow Play?I'm intrigued by this device from <a href="http://www.digitalgametechnology.com/site/products/clocks">Digital Game Technology</a>.&nbsp; It's a chess clock for boardgames.<br /><br /><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="309" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/x9mPFdEkf_E" width="550"></iframe><br /><br />I'm thinking it would be useful to speed up play in board games which have a lot of decision making like <a href="http://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/90137/blood-bowl-team-manager-card-game">Blood Bowl Team Manager</a> or as a replacement for the egg timer in <a href="http://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/18/roborally">RoboRally</a><br /><br />If anyone out there has any real world experience please let me know how it's working for you. Antony Brothertonhttps://plus.google.com/107992636120077421391noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4684041688459097563.post-38211765408101304692017-02-12T10:00:00.003+00:002017-02-18T15:47:29.438+00:00Into the Mountains - TLOD S07 E03<b>In Asdos' hovel, the party huddled around the tiny stove for warmth and pondered the plight of Tcho'eh and his species.&nbsp; Those who were not stone hearted had already made up their minds, the creature was clearly not a deamon.&nbsp; After he offered to pay them even Jan was swayed. </b><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5Q-jiWD9uT0/WKAxvzMqJaI/AAAAAAAAFYw/CzEYii1uYh4qk1rqy5zd0pr03B5WBfSvACLcB/s1600/asdos-hovel.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5Q-jiWD9uT0/WKAxvzMqJaI/AAAAAAAAFYw/CzEYii1uYh4qk1rqy5zd0pr03B5WBfSvACLcB/s1600/asdos-hovel.jpg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Asdos' Hovel in the Wood</div><br /><br />The journey into the mountains to the Aarakocra nest of Tikka-Ti-Jarra would be arduous this time of year and so Ssikar and Sir Tarigoz agreed to return to Lurneslye to get provisions.<br /><h3>This Town is Coming Like a Ghost Town </h3><br />They found the small village deserted and boarded up.&nbsp; The villagers having taken Bernhardt the Chosen's orders to heart and returned to their farms to protect themselves and their families from the ravaging deamon who could strike at any time.<br /><br />Their first stop was at the Ostlery, run by Olli Schmidt and his rotund and imposing wife, Grunhilde.&nbsp; The timid man capitualated when Tarigoz ordered him to open up in the name of the King and they soon collected his charger, Rupert, and requisitioned 2 extra horses, a mule and tack.&nbsp; As he signed the paperwork, Tarigoz knew that the canny ostler would inflate the animals worth, but time was against them.&nbsp; The rampaging cloud giant could arrive at Tikka-Ti-Jarra any day now.&nbsp; <br /><br />Nyx and Styx also chose to return to the village in order to collect their meagre belongings hidden beneath the village stage.&nbsp; In amongst their nest of straw and the two great fur coats which they brought with them were a motley collection of shiny jewgaws that they had liberated from the folk of Lurnesyle over the past few months. Given the disturbing scenes they witnessed at this morning's public examination, they surmised that this place had become a decidedly riskier place to live and it was only a matter of time before the cleric Bernhardt mistook them for deamons.&nbsp; <br /><br />At the General Store Tarigoz and Ssinkar found a kindred spirit.&nbsp; The owner, Friedrich, had no love for Bernhardt and his temple and had enjoyed seeing the zealous cleric knocked down a peg or two.&nbsp; However, he knew that with the Knight of Wulfschlossen gone Bernhardt would be emboldened in his control of the village folk.&nbsp; He unquestioningly accepted Sir Tarigoz's orders and provided thick fur-lined cloaks and enough provisions for the team and animals for 14 days.<br /><div><br /></div><div>Once reunited at Asdos hovel, the party mounted up set off along the mountain pass.&nbsp; Asdos' parting gift to each of the brave adventurers is a healing draft.<br /><br /></div><div><h3>Dire Wolves and an Ambushed Caravan </h3><br />Some 4 hours and 10 miles of travelling later, they found themselves traversing a winding and climbing pass road with steep snow spotted cliffs on both sides.&nbsp; Up ahead lay the gruesome sight of an ambushed traders caravan. &nbsp;The twisted and broken bodies of the traders had become an opportunistic meal for a snarling pack of 11 dire wolves who nervously encircled the grisly scene.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-a8v8c-82iy0/WJ9kKgiLwSI/AAAAAAAAFYQ/cGJyLM5RBu4GStJkaN_9Ga3QVVDhgKZxwCLcB/s1600/wolves.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-a8v8c-82iy0/WJ9kKgiLwSI/AAAAAAAAFYQ/cGJyLM5RBu4GStJkaN_9Ga3QVVDhgKZxwCLcB/s320/wolves.jpg" width="550" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Dire Wolves Attack</div><br />An uneasy stand off ensued, finally broken by Tarigoz's mount Rupert, a trained war horse used to fighting men not wolves, panicking and throwing the Knight to the ground.&nbsp; The mule follows suit and Ssinkar tries in vain to restrain it and with a whinny it bolts back down the pass towards Lurneslye carrying the bulk of their provisions in its saddlebags. <br /><br />As the wolves seize their moment to strike, Laurel deftly turns her horse with her desert riding skills and unleashes a salvo of arrows from her bow.&nbsp; Nyx and Styx unleash a flurry of furry fury attacking&nbsp; in unison by throwing their daggers into the same wolf. <br /><br />The wolves attack both horse and hero alike and a fluid combat develops in which 7 of the wolves are slain and the rest flee licking their wounds. &nbsp;The skirmish comes at no small cost to the heroes either as Jan, Nyx and Tarigoz are left bruised and Wulf Brunson bloodied.</div><div><br /></div><div>Examining the unfortunate corpses they discover 3 incongruous Aarakocra bodies literally dropped amidst the corpses. &nbsp;The heroes determine that the attack occurred about 2 days ago and yet the aarakocra bodies show signs of dying at least a week before that.</div><div><br /></div><div>In the wreckage of the caravan, they find more bodies, provisions and furs and a small chest containing 50gps worth of mixed coinage.</div><div><br /></div><div>Tcho'eh explains that although the bodies are those of his species they are from a different nest. &nbsp;Their wounds were made by tooth and claw like those of the traders. &nbsp;He also asks that the heroes help him to build a pyre and join him in prayers to the uncaring Sky Gods so they may once again hear the plight of his people and respond to their suffering.</div><table style="border: 0; width: 100%;"><tbody><tr> <td style="text-align: left; witdth: 50%;"><a href="http://roleplay-geek.blogspot.co.uk/2017/02/exit-stage-left-tlod-s07-e02.html" target="_blank">&lt;-- Prev Episode</a></td><td style="text-align: right; witdth: 50%;"><a href="http://roleplay-geek.blogspot.co.uk/2017/02/fanjyr-way-station-tlod-s07e04.html">Next Episode --&gt;</a></td> </tr></tbody></table>Antony Brothertonhttps://plus.google.com/107992636120077421391noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4684041688459097563.post-82417510210618793502017-02-08T09:00:00.000+00:002017-02-08T09:00:01.462+00:00Teaching D&D to Ten Year OldsOut of the blue a work colleague (and former D&amp;D player) told me that they had bought the 5e Basic Set for their 10 year old daughter and asked me for advice on how to run their first game.&nbsp; The problem is twofold being as much about teaching dad to be the DM and daughter how to play.<br /><br /><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="309" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/6UMuLCz721E" width="550"></iframe><br /><br /><h3>Breaking it Down</h3>All RPGs have the same basic elements:<br /><br /><ul><li><b>Character Generation</b> -&nbsp; Where players get to "roll up" their characterss and use their imagination and creative writing skills to put some background flesh on their barebones stats. <br /></li><li><b>Mechanics</b> - The rules of the game which are there not to constrain creativity or storytelling but to add a little consistency to the experience.&nbsp; In this way a fireball or a sword strike do a consistent amount of damage every time.<br /></li><li><b>Storytelling</b> - The art of story writing, dungeon mastery and how to be a player.&nbsp; This is not really contained in any rulebook and is a skill which you develop over time and exposure to roleplaying.</li></ul><h3>Character Generation</h3>I remember my own experiences as a young roleplayer some 35 years ago when I unwrapped my christmas gift of a 2nd Edition Players Handbook and Dungeon Masters Guide.&nbsp; Hundreds of hours were spend pouring through the pages and generating character after character who would never see a moment of play.&nbsp; However, I know now that this was probably the wrong way of going about things.<br /><br />Looking at the Lost Mine of Phandelver there are no pre-generated characters designed specifically for the adventure but there are some <a href="http://media.wizards.com/downloads/dnd/StarterSet_Charactersv2.pdf" target="_blank">starter characters in the box set</a> which is a good place to start.&nbsp; <br />There are also a couple of great web resources if this is too limited a selection.<br /><ul><li><a href="https://stirgessuck.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/thousand_basic_pregens_v011.pdf" target="_blank">1,000 Basic Pregens</a> - has a huge array of different characters presented as short form stat blocks.&nbsp; These take a bit of deciphering for the beginner but there is a key on page one to help you.<br /><br /></li><li><a href="http://www.digitaldungeonmaster.com/dd-5e-character-sheets.html" target="_blank">Digital Dungeonmaster Pregens</a> - 1060 different pregens by class and level but strangely not by race so you have to go hunting round to find the right combination of race and class.</li></ul>Once your players have played a few sessions they will understand how the game works and will be able to use something like the <a href="http://www.orcpub.com/" target="_blank">ORCPUB D&amp;D 5e Character Builder</a> to generate their own. <br /><br /><h3>Mechanics</h3>Every D&amp;D game involves a mix of <b>combat</b> (melee / missile) <b>magic</b> and <b>skill or attribute checks</b>.<br /><br /><b>Melee and Missile combat</b> boils down to finding the AC (Armour class of the target) and the player trying to beat it on a d20.&nbsp; There are lots of modifiers (numbers which are added to the dice roll or subtracted from the AC) which as you grow as a DM and player you will learn to remember.&nbsp; Once a successful hit is determined then the appropriate weapon damage is rolled and applied to the target.<br /><br /><b>Spells</b> in D&amp;D when any type of magic is cast, it always works unless the spell says that a target gets a Save.&nbsp; This usually negates or reduces the spells damage and can be cumbersome and tedious to implement, so for first games I would always leave this sort of thing out.&nbsp; Mages are low powered at low level and the important thing is that the ten year old magic user gets to do a bit of damage now and then so make sure that they have magic missile in their arsenal of spells.<br /><br /><b>Skill and Attribute Checks</b> are used whenever a PC tries to do something which is not combat or magic related.&nbsp; Searching for things, disabling or setting traps, scaling a cliff, these are all skill and attribute checks.&nbsp; The D&amp;D skills and attributes give bonuses to doing specific tasks, but they all require a roll (once again using the d20) to beat a target number.&nbsp; For example climbing needs a dexterity check, so any DEX modifiers need to be added to the dice roll, but if a character has climb skill they will get additional modifiers.&nbsp; The target number which needs to be beaten represents the difficulty of the task and starts at 15, a particularly easy task would be 10 and a difficult task 20. &nbsp; <br /><br /><h3>Storytelling</h3><b>Visualisation</b> is one of the toughest challenges when trying to get a group of people sitting round the table to all imagine the same thing.&nbsp; A key tool is the Battle Map which represents a top down view of a location and has been a standard for decades.&nbsp; This can be as simple as a sheet of paper on which you draw what the characters can see and interact with. <br /><br /><b>Key Text / Player Descriptions</b> are contained in most pre-written modules and highlight a piece of text to be read out to the players when they enter a new location describing what they first see.&nbsp; Supplementary text will describe to the DM only what the room may contain (for example monsters, hidden doors, treasure etc).<br /><br /><b>Feed the Players Excitement</b> by putting them on the spot, adding tension when they are being cautious, make it theatrical, do voices, encourage them to do voices, make grandiose gestures and gory descriptions of monster death.&nbsp; I always like to make my players to stand on the precipice throughout my games, they should never feel cosy and comfortable. <br /><br /><b>Let Players Explore</b> - The joy of roleplaying is about being able to explore.&nbsp; In some cases it might be a dungeon, in others it might be your options, but whenever you play, you are always exploring your character.&nbsp; There is no right or wrong thing to do, if a player chooses a path which will bring about conflict or adversity, warn them, but let them do it anyway.&nbsp; When the situation turns bad they will have to deal with the consequences.<br /><br /><b>Don't Be Scared to Fudge it</b>, the rules are there to be ignore and modified as you see fit.&nbsp; If a rule might prevent something heroic or cinematic happening just ignore it.&nbsp; If a monster's die roll might inadvertently kill a PC then change it.&nbsp; Need a new rule to get you out of a situation then make it up but always try to consistently apply the new rule when the situation reappears.<br /><br /><b>Keep it Simple, Stupid</b> is a good mantra and the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/KISS_principle" target="_blank">The KISS Principle</a> should always be in the forefront of your mind when DMing for a young group.&nbsp; They will want to be at the heart of the action quickly and they won't be too concerned with deep complex storylines.&nbsp; Define the Good and the Bad monsters early on as clearly black and white and they be able to quickly react to any challenges they face.<br /><br /><b>Start Small</b> by choosing a simple combat encounter for your first session.&nbsp; Ambush your heroes in the woods with a small band of kobolds or goblins.&nbsp; If the PCs kill half of them, the monsters will run away.&nbsp; This immediately presents the players a plethora of choices, do they run after them? Do they run to town alert the authorities?&nbsp; Do they loot the bodies? Do they track the fleeing monsters back to their hideout?&nbsp; All have possibilities for the next installment.<br /><br /><h3>Guage your Success as a DM</h3><br />If all goes well your players should look like this:<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-eTrYfsHUSCo/WJmu5LOuNFI/AAAAAAAAFLU/3NW6mD7GRUowjLHaiLUEWJIEE5YEn4NQQCLcB/s1600/Stranger-Things-DD.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-eTrYfsHUSCo/WJmu5LOuNFI/AAAAAAAAFLU/3NW6mD7GRUowjLHaiLUEWJIEE5YEn4NQQCLcB/s320/Stranger-Things-DD.jpg" width="550" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Stranger Things - D&amp;D Success!!</div><br />Antony Brothertonhttps://plus.google.com/107992636120077421391noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4684041688459097563.post-41521602175434929142017-02-04T21:40:00.002+00:002017-02-12T10:03:11.890+00:00Exit Stage Left - TLOD S07 E02<b>The 500 strong mob bayed for blood, and <a href="https://www.blogger.com/site/thelandsofdual/heroes/season-7/jan-the-sell-sword">Jan the Sell Sword</a> complied by slashing the magically restrained Murdoch cleanly across the face.&nbsp; The spell wore off and clasping at his ragged throat in an attempt to stem the flow of blood, Murdoch slumped face down in the dirt gurgling "Mercy Sir, Mercy!"</b><br /><br /><div style="display: inline; float: right; margin: 5px 10px;"><a href="https://sites.google.com/site/thelandsofdual/sessions/season-7/e02-exit-stage-left/aarakocra.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://sites.google.com/site/thelandsofdual/sessions/season-7/e02-exit-stage-left/aarakocra.jpg" width="282" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;">An Aarakocra</div></div>On the stage, Bernhardt the Chosen of The Temple, screamed at his two acolytes "For the Gods sake help him you idiots".&nbsp; <a href="https://www.blogger.com/site/thelandsofdual/heroes/season-7/sir-tarigoz-perplenderize">Sir Tarigoz</a> closed in on the nearest cleric, Grunb, and at sword point told him to stop.&nbsp; Grunb responded swiftly, casting a sound blast spell right in Tarigoz's face.&nbsp; The Knight of the 5th Legion was not phased by this but the sheer intensity of the spell made him step backwards, lose his footing on the edge of the stage and tumble off.&nbsp; The other acolyte Penryk hurried across to the stairs at the right hand side of the stage to get to Murdoch.&nbsp; <br /><br />Having released the winged Deamon from the cross, <a href="https://www.blogger.com/site/thelandsofdual/heroes/season-7/ai-nyx">Nyx</a>, <a href="https://www.blogger.com/site/thelandsofdual/heroes/season-7/ai-styx">Styx</a>, <a href="https://www.blogger.com/site/thelandsofdual/heroes/group-3/laurel">Laurel</a> and the creature hid behind the stage contemplating their next move.&nbsp; Escape. <br /><br />Watching the trial by combat from the edge of the circle, <a href="https://www.blogger.com/site/thelandsofdual/heroes/group-4/wulf-brundson">Wulf Brundson</a>, seethed with fury at this clerical interference in a lawful trial by combat.&nbsp; The Euborean Barbarian could not let this religious interloper change the outcome of the battle with a healing spell and so proceeded to block Penryk's progress down the stairs.&nbsp; The mob shoved him into the circle and screamed "another challenger".&nbsp;&nbsp; As Grunb leered over the edge of the stage laughing at the fallen Knight, Sir Tarigoz jumped to his feet and plunged his bastard sword into the clerics belly.&nbsp; Grunb tumbled off the stage impaling himself up to the hilt on Tarigoz's outstretched sword.&nbsp; It took all of the Knight's strength not to crumble under the weight of the cleric and he briefly held him aloft before unceremoniously dumping him to the dirt.&nbsp; The crowd recoiled in shock and horror at the sight of one of the God's chosen being righteously put down by the Kingsman.&nbsp; This day would go down in village history and the God's would surely wreak a vengeance upon the Kingsman for such a bold act.<br /><br />The spell holding Ssinkar wore off and he immediately moved towards the fallen Murdoch.&nbsp; The Salamankari was a cleric not a fighter and he had no intention of letting the poor man die at his hand.&nbsp; Grasping at this throat with his scaly hands, he stopped the flow of blood with a healing spell.&nbsp; Murdoch immediately cried out in pain as the opportunist Jan the Sell Sword stabbed him in the arm.&nbsp; Murdoch scrabbled through the dirt towards the foot of the stage.<br /><br /><br />Hoping that they could find bandages and supplies in one of the empty village buildings, the Phylus sisters Nyx and Styx and Laurel, carried the winged daemon to the nearest one.&nbsp; Once inside the Absent Badger tavern, they found that it was was empty save for one odd looking old man face down in his own puddle of mead.<br /><br />Trying not to disturb the fellow, the sisters hauled the daemon onto one of the tables at the back of the bar and tended to his wounds.&nbsp; The old man immediately awoke from his slumber and asked "Has he finished torturing that poor Aarakocra yet?"&nbsp; The near sighted old man introduced himself as Asdos and with a wave of his hands and a mumbling of words cast a spell.&nbsp; Laurel went to the bar to fetch a bottle of strong spirits to staunch the Aarakocra's many small cuts and bruises.&nbsp; When looking at the rest of the party she noticed that they had disappeared, she could still hear them but could not hear them.&nbsp; Moving over to the table she passed through some form of illusory barrier which hid that end of the room from view.<br /><br /><br />Tarigoz mounted the stage and as he passed the now empty cross he confronted Bernhardt telling him that he had lost a fair fight and he should stop this travesty.&nbsp; Bernhardt, unaware of the deamon's escape, addressed the crowd and flamboyantly pointing at the empty cross screamed "The kingsman is in league with the demon"<br /><br /><br />The crowd, enthralled by the red faced cleric noticed the empty cross and retorted in unison <br /><br /><blockquote><b>"The Deamon has fucked off!"</b></blockquote><br />Bernhardt's face dropped as the realisation that he had lost dawned on him.&nbsp; He screamed at the crowd "Halt the combat! Halt the combat! Return to your homes and defend your babies! The Deamon is loose!.<br />As the mob disbursed in all directions, Bernhard gathered his injured men and taunted the Knight of Wulfschlossen defiantly cursing <br /><br /><blockquote><b>"This isn't the last you've heard of this Kingsman.&nbsp; I will be writing a report of your treasonous conduct to your superiors."</b></blockquote>They clambered into a cart and drove off in the direction of the Temple.<br />Some of the villagers decided to quench their thirst in the tavern before they went home to their farms.&nbsp; Inside The Absent Badger, the mage Asdos declared that it was "Time to go" and opened the window behind him and ushered everyone out.&nbsp; They headed across the fields to the hovel in the woods he called home.<br />Jan, Ssinkar, Wulf and Sir Tarigoz found themselves alone in the village square, they decided to band together to search for the Deamon and get to the bottom of what it was and why it was here.&nbsp; Wulf's tracking skills soon revealed that a party of three had dragged the creature in the direction of the village tavern.&nbsp; On entering the bar the locals immediately stopped their raucous conversations and glared at the strangers.&nbsp; Ssinkar plonked 10 gold on the bar and declared "A drink for all".&nbsp; The barkeep bit into one of the coins and exclaimed "The red devil's money is good".&nbsp; This immediately broke the awkward impasse with shouts of "he has&nbsp; scales on the outside but a kind heart on the inside".&nbsp; As the illusory wall spell wore off, Jan noticed the suddenly gaping window with blood and feathers coating the window ledge.&nbsp; <br /><br />The posse of PCs swiftly downed their drinks and began following the tracks from the window, which had now become 5, across the fields towards the woods which Tarigoz knew was the home of the mage Asdos.&nbsp; He contemplated that Fate was a strange mistress and was hard at work weaving together a strange band of folk to do her mysterious bidding.<br /><br />In the mage's hovel, the assembled group crowded around his small stove, the Aarakocra told them that he was a messenger sent to find help.&nbsp; His people were being systematically wiped out by an angry vicious Cloud Giant.&nbsp; He was moving his cloud castle around the mountains destroying the AaraKocran nests and slaughtering their chicks.&nbsp; The shaman of his tribe had consulted the Sky Gods who had flatly&nbsp; refused to aid them, but for one renegade who said that he would send his daughter, Laurel.&nbsp; The Sky Gods promptly moved their crystal castle higher into the sky than any Aarakocra could fly.<br /><br />Sensing that the group were not entirely convinced that preventing the genocide of his people was a worthy and heroic enough deed he declared "I have money!!"<br /><br /><table style="border: 0; width: 100%;"><tbody><tr> <td style="text-align: left; witdth: 50%;"><a href="http://roleplay-geek.blogspot.co.uk/2017/01/a-public-examination-of-deamon-tlod-s07.html" target="_blank">&lt;-- Prev Episode</a></td><td style="text-align: right; witdth: 50%;"><a href="http://roleplay-geek.blogspot.co.uk/2017/02/into-mountains.html" target="_blank">Next Episode --&gt;</a></td> </tr></tbody></table>Antony Brothertonhttps://plus.google.com/107992636120077421391noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4684041688459097563.post-19454333513099625142017-02-03T06:42:00.000+00:002017-02-04T21:31:42.196+00:00Why Who Plays Who? Doesn't MatterSo Peter Capaldi has thrown in the towel, been fired, resigned (delete as applicable) and will regenerate at the end of series.&nbsp; The search for the 11th doctor will inevitably consume the nation (if you listen to the pundits), but not this little corner of geekdom.&nbsp; <br /><h3>To be honest, I don't care.</h3>I have every faith that whichever actor gets the job, be they young, old, black, white, male or female, dog or cat, they will do a bang up job.&nbsp; IMHO it is not the actor which makes a great Doctor, rather it tends to be the other way around.&nbsp; The role maketh the actor.<br /><br />What concerns me more is that the BBC gives whoever takes on the mantle the proper tools for the job. <br /><h3>Falling Ratings? </h3><br />Some of the gutterpress have accused the BBC of ditching Capaldi, claiming he is unpopular and that ratings have suffered.&nbsp; I disagree.&nbsp; <br /><h3>Nu Who By The Numbers</h3><br />Looking at the ratings of each Doctor across their time in office, their relative popularity doesn't hint at anything terribly wrong with Capaldi's stewardship of the TARDIS.<br /><br />In fact he has racked up a creditable episode count over his 855 days and still has season 10 yet to air.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-TcuAAsDbecA/WJOvxjQqTcI/AAAAAAAAFK8/8vc1GnR3-kk0D8p4dRVaQYUFNSfcVQPLQCLcB/s1600/dr-who-stats.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Dr Who Stats" border="0" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-TcuAAsDbecA/WJOvxjQqTcI/AAAAAAAAFK8/8vc1GnR3-kk0D8p4dRVaQYUFNSfcVQPLQCLcB/s640/dr-who-stats.jpg" title="click to embiggen" width="550" /></a></div>&nbsp; <br />However, the big fat elephant in the room is the increase in "Days Without Who".<br /><br />Put simply there has been too much time between seasons/episodes. <br /><br />In a Newsweek interview back in March 2016, Capaldi himself criticised the BBC's "<a href="http://www.express.co.uk/showbiz/tv-radio/651647/Peter-Capaldi-Doctor-Who-scheduling-criticise-BBC" target="_blank">erratic scheduling</a>".&nbsp; Helmsman Stephen Moffat also moves on at the end of the year which signals a sea change at the BBC.&nbsp; Perhaps they are scaling back on expensive shows such as Who and replacing them with cheap as chips reality TV which they can regurgitate out at pennies on the dollar.&nbsp; Who knows?<br /><br />What I know is that I'm fed up with mid season breaks and long hiatuses.<br /><h3>No More Love interests... Please</h3><br />Whilst I enjoyed the Rose, Amy and Clara characters I found their on/off relationships with the Doctor nauseating.<br /><br />Can we not go back to the condescending alien superiority of old Who?.&nbsp; It's not a feminist backlash, I don't care if the companion is male or female.&nbsp; Let's face it everyone is a complete idiot compared to the Doctor's supragenius mind.&nbsp; One of my favourite male companions was Harry Sullivan who on many levels was a complete berk, but he knew his place, acting as both a plot device or a plot explainer whenever the story needed it.<br /><br />My favourite female Doctor / Companion relationship was that of the Fourth Doctor (Tom Baker) and Leela (Louise Jameson).&nbsp; The Doctor's frequent frustration and anger at her savage common sense, naivete and independent nature were a joy to behold.&nbsp; She held her own on many occasions and even reversed the damsel in distress trope a few times saving the Doctor from his own curiosity. <br /><h3>How Do You Fix Who?</h3>I don't want to sound like an old fogey, but the golden years of Who had a plot template and it's one which I have used in my own storytelling.&nbsp; It goes like this:<br /><br />1.&nbsp; Episode begins with a short segment to show the episodes location and shows two factions violently trying to co-exist with each other.&nbsp; The two antagonistic factions have been in impasse for many years / decades / centuries / millenia.<br /><br />2.&nbsp; The TARDIS crashlands in a new location and is somehow trapped or disabled (removing its use as a powerful Deus Ex Machina from the plot solution).&nbsp; The Doctor and companion narrowly escape with their lives and must now use their wits and ingenuity to survive.<br /><br />3.&nbsp; The Doctor and Companion are soon seperated, one each to each faction.&nbsp; The story of each faction emerges (as told from their perspective) through their interactions with the Doctor and the companion respectively.<br /><br />4.&nbsp; An Attack is launched by one faction against the other.&nbsp; There is much running around and confusion during which the Doctor and companion are reunited and seperated again.&nbsp; They swap sides and, armed with the facts about the other faction, a true picture emerges of which faction is Good and which is Evil.<br /><br />5.&nbsp; The Doctor and companion are finally reunited and the Doctor saves the day by either resolving their differences, helping one side defeat the other or fails to save the Evil faction from their own demise. &nbsp; <br /><br />Simples.<br /><br />Let's hope that the BBC take the opportunity to go back to basics and give us some good old fashioned scarey thought provoking tense sci-fi like they used to be able to make.<br /><br />Oh and if <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0429363/" target="_blank">Toby Jones</a> or <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1239499/?ref_=fn_al_nm_1" target="_blank">Rory Kinnear</a> get the job I will be a happy man.&nbsp; <br /><br />&nbsp; Antony Brothertonhttps://plus.google.com/107992636120077421391noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4684041688459097563.post-81727335807263987582017-01-29T09:56:00.000+00:002017-02-04T21:42:24.805+00:00A Public Examination of the Deamon - TLOD S07 E01<div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div>As promised, I have begun DMing a new adventure in my campaign world The Lands of Dual and will be making regular session reports from now on.</div><div><h3>Introducing the Heroes&nbsp; </h3><ul><li>Ai-Nyx - (Tara) - Female <a href="https://sites.google.com/site/thelandsofdual/races/phylus">Phylus</a> (demi-human cat) Thief from <a href="https://sites.google.com/site/thelandsofdual/atlas/xix">Xix</a> </li><li>Ai-Styx - (Zoe) - Female <a href="https://sites.google.com/site/thelandsofdual/races/phylus">Phylus</a> Rogue from <a href="https://sites.google.com/site/thelandsofdual/atlas/xix">Xix</a> </li><li>Jan the Sell Sword - (Craig Tanner) - Human Fighter from Newhon</li><li><b><a href="https://sites.google.com/site/thelandsofdual/heroes/group-3/laurel">Laurel</a></b> - (Carol Cunningham) - A female Half-Elf (<a href="https://sites.google.com/site/thelandsofdual/races/elfenkin/cloud-elves">Aeroimm</a>) Ranger from the Great Desert of <a href="https://sites.google.com/site/thelandsofdual/atlas/sankahar">Sankahar</a>.&nbsp; </li><li>Sir Tarigoz Purplenderise - (Mark Cunningham) - A Human Knight of the 5th legion of the Wulfschlossen Army</li><li>Ssinkar - (Steve Tasso) - A male Salamankari Cleric from the deserts of Sankahar.</li></ul></div><div><h3>Lurneslye in Wulfschlossen</h3></div><div></div><div>Our heroes find themselves in the farming village of Lurneslye in the foothills of the mountains which form the spine of the great nation of Wulfschlossen.</div><div style="display: inline; float: right; margin: 5px 10px;"><a href="https://sites.google.com/site/thelandsofdual/sessions/season-7/episode-01-examinination-of-the-deamon/lurneslye-intro-handout.jpg?attredirects=0"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://sites.google.com/site/thelandsofdual/_/rsrc/1485608669043/sessions/season-7/episode-01-examinination-of-the-deamon/lurneslye-intro-handout.jpg?height=400&amp;width=233" width="233" /></a></div>A public meeting has been called to examine a creature which was caught skulking around the outskirts of the village by Bernhardt the Chosen of the Temple of Lurneslye.&nbsp; The villagers, a mob of some 500 or so folk have assembled around the large wooden stage in the centre of the village.&nbsp; They bear makeshift arms, in order to defend themselves from the abomination and to ensure that it receives the appropriate justice should it be convicted or try to escape.&nbsp; </div>The creature, a winged bird like humaoid, is being torturtured, plucked and interrogated on the stage by Bernhardt and his two acolytes whilst the imposing figure of Murdoch, their Bodyguard, stands beside them preventing anyone from mounting the stage. </div>Laurel, deciding that she has had enough of this cruel treatment of what is clearly not a daemon, attempts to mount the stage.&nbsp; After casting a Detect Evil spell, Ssinkhar determines that no-one on the stage is Evil and proceeds to addresses Bernhardt directly claiming that as a fellow cleric he has the power to do the same.&nbsp; Bernhardt dismisses the Salamankari as a foreign devil in league with the deamon.&nbsp; </div>Sir Tarigoz, tasked with upholding law in this frontier village, storms the stage demanding that Bernhardt hear Laurel's evidence as it is written in the law.&nbsp; A war of words ensues between Bernhardt and Sir Tarigoz which ends when the villagers call for a trial by combat.&nbsp; Ssinkhar accepts the trial on behalf of the creature and Bernhardt orders Murdoch to fight on behalf of the temple.</div>The villagers immediately step back to create a circle of combat and the two acolytes cast detect magic spells to ensure that Ssinkar does not cheat by using a magic weapon.&nbsp; Murdoch and Sinkar engage in a battle to the death.</div>Meanwhile under the stage the two Phylus, Ai-Nyx and Ai-Styx, are hiding in fear.&nbsp; They have been living in the village for a few months and have witnessed Bernhardt addressing the crowd every holyday.&nbsp; He has never been this zealous and the crowd have never been so animated, they decide to wait out the events until they can make a break for it.</div>On the edge of the combat circle, Jan the sellsword is eating an apple and watching the events in anticipation of learning a few things about Murdoch's fighting style.</div>After a good dealing of pacing around Murdoch closes the gap by lunging at Ssinkar but misses with his broadsword.&nbsp; The wily Salamankar takes advantage of the closesness of the encounter and surreptisiously casts a command spell on Murdoch but fails.<br /><br />Ai-Styx slinks out from below the stage to get a better look at the creature followed by her sister.&nbsp; They both feel great pity for it and decide to release it by picking the manacles whilst the mob are pre-occupied by the fight.&nbsp; Laurel spots the pair and stands between the clerics and the creature to block anyone's view of their actions.</div>Murdoch stabs Ssinkhar.&nbsp; The crowd cheer and the Salamankari responds by casting a hold person on his opponent.&nbsp; Murdoch is frozen in place, but the obvious use of magic angers the two acolytes and they both cast hold person on Ssinkar.&nbsp; Bernhardt demands that Sir Tarigoz arrest the now paralysed Ssinkar as he has clearly broken the rule of law and must face the same punishment as the creature, death by fire.&nbsp; The enraged mob demand immediate satisfaction in blood and someone shoves Jan into the circle.&nbsp; <br /><br />As it is written in the law if another enters the circle he must take up the challenge.&nbsp; Jan, an opportunistic sort of fellow, knows that he cannot possibly beat Murdoch in a fair fight.&nbsp; He takes immediate advantage of the fact he is currently paralysed by Ssinkar's spell and slashes the unfortunate man's throat.</div>The two Phylus successfully release the creature and, aided by Laurel, lower it down out of sight behind the stage.<br /><table style="border: 0; width: 100%;"><tbody><tr> <td style="text-align: left; witdth: 50%;"><br /></td><td style="text-align: right; witdth: 50%;"><a href="http://roleplay-geek.blogspot.co.uk/2017/02/exit-stage-left-tlod-s07-e02.html" target="_blank">Next Episode --&gt;</a></td> </tr></tbody></table>Antony Brothertonhttps://plus.google.com/107992636120077421391noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4684041688459097563.post-66353207356491169592017-01-05T21:04:00.001+00:002017-01-05T21:13:17.683+00:00The Tarot and its use in RPGsAs soon as I read the title of the <a href="http://talesofagm.com/?p=5736" target="_blank">Jan 2016 RPG Blog Carnival</a> I knew I had to write something about my use of Tarot cards in my Fantasy RPGs over the years.<br /><br /><h3>The Deck of Many Things (aka RPG History 101)</h3><h3>&nbsp;</h3><h3></h3>As many of you will know playing cards have been used as physical representations of the cards in the classic deck of many things since its inception.&nbsp; The <a href="http://www.mithrilandmages.com/blog/2011/10/26/origins-the-deck-of-many-things/" target="_blank">first published reference</a> of the use of tarot dates back to 1983 where Michael J. Lowrey codified its use in AD&amp;D in his article published in Dragon #77.&nbsp; It's also in the <a href="http://www.dandwiki.com/wiki/SRD:Deck_of_Many_Things" target="_blank">D&amp;D SRD</a> so as far as I'm concerned it's cannon!!<br /><br />Presenting your players with a tattered tarot deck lends an air of theatricality and mystique to your game which will not go unnoticed by your players.<br /><br /><h3>Tarot as a Character Generation Tool</h3><h3>&nbsp;</h3>Surprisingly there was a time before the <a href="https://www.dandwiki.com/wiki/5e_Backgrounds" target="_blank">5e Background Generator</a> and some players always seem to have difficulty coming up with interesting motivations for their PCs.&nbsp; I have often used a much simplified version of the Celtic Cross Spread to help them to generate their own ideas for their characters background and motivations.<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-aATmNNTMf1c/WG6vTN4O4yI/AAAAAAAAFKQ/77UKip96r1IAiRB-cK7RVFBr4Fob49HGwCLcB/s1600/tarot-spread.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-aATmNNTMf1c/WG6vTN4O4yI/AAAAAAAAFKQ/77UKip96r1IAiRB-cK7RVFBr4Fob49HGwCLcB/s1600/tarot-spread.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A typical shortened "Celtic Cross" spread using only the 22 Major Arcana "Picture" cards</td></tr></tbody></table><br />The first card laid is the "Significator" and describes the PCs current state.&nbsp; In Tarot terms this is often described as the question that the appellant is asking of the cards.&nbsp; For example a Fool in this position may indicate that the PC is a happy go lucky type of person blissfully ignorant of their place in the world or it could mean that they are quite literally the village idiot.&nbsp; <br /><br />The second card (The crossing) covers the first and identifies that which currently opposes the PC.&nbsp; In other words the thing which must be overcome if the PC is to realise their goal.&nbsp; This can often suggest some sort of personality or circumstance change which the PC must achieve.&nbsp; For example a Tower in this position may mean that only by experiencing a disaster or tumultuous event will the PC be able to achieve their goal.&nbsp; A devil on the other hand may signify the acquisition of power and wealth or the casting off of material possessions in order to fulfil ones potential.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <br /><br />The third card represents the factors which are the foundation for the PCs current state these are considered to be the the things upon which the PC can rely upon such as their family or their own skills and strengths.&nbsp; A "good" card such as The Emperor may mean that the PC has strength of focus or that they have an imposing father figure which they can rely upon.&nbsp; A "bad" card such as the hanged man may signify that the PC holds an outdated opinion or principle or that they have had the strength to make a significant change in their life such as letting go of a previous life or relationship.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <br /><br />The fourth card represents the PCs immediate past, events which may have happened very recently which have influenced the PCs current position.&nbsp; A Tower in this position may signify a disaster from which the PC has fled with their life.&nbsp; A Moon may signify that the PC has recently had an emotionally charged romantic relationship, also which they are fleeing or perhaps they are being chased by a lover (or more likely the lover's father).&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <br /><br />The fifth card signifies the PCs immediate future, that which may come to pass irrespective of the PCs actions within the next few days.&nbsp; This is something of a gift for the DM and I often use it as a mechanism to gift the player a plot hook or some sort of advance knowledge which they can use in an upcoming encounter.&nbsp; Of course to be really effective it should also be intentionally vague and mean little or nothing to the player initially.&nbsp; Consider this to be the "you will meet a dark stranger" moment of the reading.<br /><br />The sixth card represents the best possible outcome or as I like to think, the PCs ultimate goal or desire.&nbsp; This card is probably the most important in the spread as it directly influences the PCs motivations.&nbsp; A Judgement card in this position may well signify that the PC is mindful of their mortality and wishes to do good deeds to prepare for their own accounting before their chosen deity.&nbsp; A Hermit in this position may mean that the PC seeks isolation, retrospection in the pursuit of the search for truth.&nbsp; <br /><br />As you can see from the example interpretations of the cards, they offer an almost infinite number (53,721,360 to be exact) of permutations and potential ideas for even the most jaded old school player who bears the scars of a thousand personalities. <br /><br /><h3>Insta-Deck of Fate</h3><h3>&nbsp;</h3>There are those times in a game when the party are on their last legs and hope is something which has long since put on it skedaddle trousers and exited stage right.&nbsp; This is when you ask one of their number to draw a card from the fate deck.<br /><br />Use this as an opportunity to introduce a new game saving factor relevant to the card.&nbsp; For example a prone hero about to be beheaded by a nefarious bad guy draws the Heirophant and the bad guy suddenly has a pang of conscience and decides to do the right thing and pauses… leaving them wide open for a killing blow.<br /><br />My advice is to use this sparingly and only in dire circumstances to avoid a meaningless and game altering character death, otherwise the players may begin to consider their characters as somewhat immortal.<br /><br /><h3>The Dream Sequence</h3><h3>&nbsp;</h3>I have also used tarot cards to project PC dreams, visions or hallucinations.&nbsp; How the players interpret the cards is up to them, but at least it gives an player something to reflect on as the blood slowly drains from their PCs unconscious body.&nbsp; Perhaps it includes some insight into their current predicament or some final sage advice about mending their ways should they be restored to health by their comrades, you choose what it really means.<br /><br /><h3>The Story Generator</h3><h3>&nbsp;</h3>In much the same way as in the character generation above, the Tarot can be used during the plot generation process.&nbsp; Draw a few cards to generate a handful of significant NPCs around which the plot revolves and then do Celtic Cross spreads for each of these.&nbsp; The goals and obstacles that they must overcome will often suggest some sort of contested relationship in much the same way as players generate relationships, needs, objects and locations between each other during setup in a game of Fiasco.<br /><br />For those readers who feel uncomfortable with using a Tarot, I can heartily recommend the use of <a href="http://roleplay-geek.blogspot.co.uk/search?q=encounter+deck" target="_blank">Inkwell Ideas Encounter Decks</a> which contain a wide variety of story ideas.&nbsp; Vintage accessories such as the "Whimsy" or <a href="http://roleplay-geek.blogspot.co.uk/2010/10/old-school-accessories-story-path-cards.html" target="_blank">Story Path Cards</a> also have potential for storyboarding your games.<br /><br />Indie RPG fans may also be familiar with the innovative storytelling map drawing game, <a href="http://buriedwithoutceremony.com/the-quiet-year/" target="_blank">The Quiet Year</a>, which uses a standard playing card deck to generate weekly events which shape a world and its inhabitants.&nbsp; Many of these events can be lifted directly from the game to create world shaping events for your own campaign.<br /><br /><h3>Interpreting the Cards</h3><h3>&nbsp;</h3>I recommend only using the 22 major arcana cards mostly because these are the pretty ones but also because it's a lot easier to just reference the 44 different meanings (each card has 2 orientations Upright and Reversed) rather than the 156 of a full deck.<br /><br />The tarot card meanings are intentionally vague and are supposed to inspire associations in the mind of the appellant (the player) and the reader (the GM) is merely using it as a device to stimulate creativity.&nbsp; Many of the meanings are allegorical based on the significance of the objects found in the images.&nbsp; For example the Fool is often depicted being followed by a dog which signifies unconditional love.&nbsp; The hanged man is usually depicted tied by one leg which harks back to medieval punishment for traitors.&nbsp; These symbols may of course mean something else to the appellant and cause them to imagine some other significance for their PC.&nbsp; There are a plethora of resources for Tarot meanings including handy reference apps for the mobile gamer.<br /><br /><h3>A Final Word about Death, Devils and Towers</h3><h3>&nbsp;</h3>The appearance of the Death card is often followed swiftly by a sharp intake of breath.&nbsp; In tarot terms the Death card actually signifies the end of a phase of life and a transition to something new.&nbsp; Interpreting this card as PC death, particularly if it appears in the fifth position of the spread described above should be avoided.<br /><br />This should also be the case with the Devil and Tower cards which also signify disturbance or change rather than a career ending catastrophe.Antony Brothertonhttps://plus.google.com/107992636120077421391noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4684041688459097563.post-19920225122494238062016-10-01T17:43:00.001+01:002016-10-01T17:43:51.868+01:00Reaper Bones: Horace "Action" JacksonAlthough my progress on the bones minis has been painfully slow, at least some has been made in the last year or so.<br /><br />Horace "Action" Jackson is one of those rare minis which does exactly what it says on the tin.&nbsp; He's your archetypal badass disco dude.<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-kUhgnnIlmvQ/V-_mdm8OUvI/AAAAAAAAFH0/CwjTXstouhgKAXrgtbXwAA8nZgrvXXamgCLcB/s1600/bones_minis_036.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-kUhgnnIlmvQ/V-_mdm8OUvI/AAAAAAAAFH0/CwjTXstouhgKAXrgtbXwAA8nZgrvXXamgCLcB/s320/bones_minis_036.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Horace "Action" Jackson</td></tr></tbody></table>Amazingly I had never seen the <a href="http://www.reapermini.com/figurefinder#detail/80023" target="_blank">Reaper Miniatures Figure Finder page</a> for him before I set about painting him and lo and behold if I didn't choose exactly the same colour scheme for him.<br /><br />He's already seen some action on the table and despatched some jive ass talking turkeys (aka undead) <br /><h3>Bones Progress&nbsp;</h3>Reaper Bones: 245 - Painted: 36<br /><h3>Related Posts: </h3><div class="post-body entry-content" id="post-body-4894502357140677991" itemprop="description articleBody"><br /><br /><br /><li><a href="http://roleplay-geek.blogspot.co.uk/2013/05/reaper-bones-painting-marathon-begins.html">Reaper Bones: The Marathon Begins</a> - Where I paint a dozen Giant Rats </li><li><a href="http://roleplay-geek.blogspot.co.uk/2013/05/reaper-bones-kobolds-are-they-dogs-or.html">Reaper Bones: Kobolds, Are They Dogs or Dragons?</a> - Where I paint a dozen kobolds.&nbsp;</li><li><a href="http://roleplay-geek.blogspot.co.uk/2013/06/reaper-bones-carcase-of-skeletons.html">Reaper Bones: A Carcase of Skeletons</a> - Where I paint a half dozen skeletons</li><li><a href="http://roleplay-geek.blogspot.co.uk/2013/07/reaper-bones-shuffle-of-zombies.html">Reaper Bones: A Shuffle of Zombies</a> - Where I paint five zombies.</li><li><a href="http://roleplay-geek.blogspot.co.uk/2013/07/reaper-bones-introducing-shaina.html">Reaper Bones: Introducing Shaina Coppervein, Dwarven Orc Hunter</a> - First PC mini</li><li><a href="http://roleplay-geek.blogspot.co.uk/2013/08/reaper-bones-mimic-treasure-chest-and.html">Reaper Bones: Mimic, Treasure Chest and How I re-base my Bones</a> - Where I paint furniture</li><li><a href="http://roleplay-geek.blogspot.co.uk/2013/11/reaper-bones-fire-elemental-meets.html">Reaper Bones: Fire Elemental Meets Novelty Lamp</a> - Where I hack a mini with LEDs</li><li><a href="http://roleplay-geek.blogspot.co.uk/2013/12/reaper-bones-flaming-sphere-led.html">Reaper Bones: Flaming Sphere LED Tealight Hack</a> - Another mini LED lighting project&nbsp;</li><li><a href="http://roleplay-geek.blogspot.co.uk/2015/02/reaper-bones-elliwyn-heatherlark-gnome.html">Reaper Bones: Elliwyn Heatherlark, Gnome Bard</a> - Another PC mini</li></div>Antony Brothertonhttps://plus.google.com/107992636120077421391noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4684041688459097563.post-20818467734975654292016-09-27T21:53:00.001+01:002016-10-03T20:42:37.395+01:00Back on the HorseWell tonight sees me writing my first blog entry since July 2016 and a lot of water has passed under the life bridge.&nbsp; A new job in the private sector was kicking my arse for a while but I now seem to have it all under control (foolish words?).<br /><h3>A return to DMing</h3>In recent weeks I have also returned to DMing after a long hiatus.<br /><br />When the opportunity arose (a nice way of saying that a game collapsed and I stepped into the breach) I have to say I was filled with doubt.&nbsp; Could I still do it?, would I be able to juggle the balls of work/life balance to give time to prep? would I be able to physically last for a 3 hour session after a hectic day at work?<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MlsB_q8T6V8/V-rZ7DMHueI/AAAAAAAAFHY/tSU_XQ-cTR8YSsPpYb_C491bLH9CGtQjgCLcB/s1600/buckaroo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Buckaroo!" border="0" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MlsB_q8T6V8/V-rZ7DMHueI/AAAAAAAAFHY/tSU_XQ-cTR8YSsPpYb_C491bLH9CGtQjgCLcB/s640/buckaroo.jpg" title="Buckaroo the balancing game with a bad tempered mule (MB Games Circa 1980)" width="550" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Technically not a horse, but this is how I felt about DMing after an 1,800 day detox </td></tr></tbody></table>&nbsp; Well I did manage to survive and I can't believe how much I enjoyed it.&nbsp; Sure it was not my finest hour and I was a little rusty, but I made it through to the other side and I think my players really enjoyed it.<br /><br />Most likely the two go hand in hand, without the catalyst of an ongoing campaign I did not have the creative juices flowing through my mind in order to create content and to share those ideas with you the RPG community.<br /><h3>Old Skool Shits and Giggles </h3>The scenario I ran was an epilogue to the NSFW module <a href="https://rpggeek.com/rpgitem/148599/liberation-demon-slayer" target="_blank">Liberation of the Demon Slayer</a> by <a class="g-profile" href="https://plus.google.com/116291271643055553670" target="_blank">+Venger Satanis</a>, and Bryan Winter's decidedly Old Skool scenario Baron Mikrut's Tomb from <a href="https://rpggeek.com/rpgitem/48147/pulp-dungeons-uninvited-guests" target="_blank">Pulp Dungeons #5: Uninvited Guests</a> published by Corsair Publishing back in 1997.&nbsp; The latter posed a few problems when it came to monster stats because it was one of those systemless scenario which used to get published back in the day by Independent Publishers who didn't want to sign up to OGL or pay system royalties.<br /><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7yR78D1DwHk/V-rauwVklJI/AAAAAAAAFHc/d-16KJ0TlI8boacCMZagALFK9KVoDeiCgCLcB/s1600/Pulp-Dungeons-5-Uninvited-Guests.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Pulp Dungeons #5: Uninvited Guests (1997 Corsair Publishing)" border="0" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7yR78D1DwHk/V-rauwVklJI/AAAAAAAAFHc/d-16KJ0TlI8boacCMZagALFK9KVoDeiCgCLcB/s320/Pulp-Dungeons-5-Uninvited-Guests.jpg" title="Pulp Dungeons #5: Uninvited Guests (1997 Corsair Publishing)" width="213" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">by Gary Gygax (it must be old skool)</td></tr></tbody></table>They always require a bit more DM effort than "Official Modules" but they often have a much bigger payback in terms of not suffering from the usual tropes or baggage which come with trying to fit into an established milleu.&nbsp; &nbsp; <br /><br />I'll do a proper synopsis on <a href="https://sites.google.com/site/thelandsofdual/" target="_blank">My Campaign Blog</a> but suffice to say the PCs handled the nuclear winter, mutated wildlife, a demon invasion and a dungeon crawl with aplomb.&nbsp; Thanks to all those who took part it was a lot of fun. &nbsp; <br /><br />So my mind is made up and I will now start to...<br /><h3>Plan My Next Game</h3>The question is where do I set my next game.&nbsp; The library is fully stocked with plenty of dungeon magazines and some old skool scenarios and I have 3 months to put something together to astound and amaze.&nbsp; Will I be proactive? Will I labour furiously to craft a campaign so cunning that it will be the talk of my game group for years?<br /><br />Probably not, but I'm going to do it anyway.&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; <br /><br />Antony Brothertonhttps://plus.google.com/107992636120077421391noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4684041688459097563.post-39631056172109859832015-07-01T23:53:00.000+01:002015-07-01T23:53:25.093+01:00Dungeonmorph Dice gets an Ennies NominationThe <a href="http://www.ennie-awards.com/blog/2015-ennie-award-nominees-and-spotlight-winners/" target="_blank">2015 Ennie Award Nominees</a> are out and I don't normally get excited about these sorts of things as Gen Con is so far away and I'm unlikely to get the chance to go myself.&nbsp; However, this year is different and I will be rooting for Inkwell Ideas <a href="http://dungeonmorphs.com/" target="_blank">Dungeonmorph Explorers Dice</a> in the "Best Aid / Accessory" category.<br /><br />What sets Dungeonmorph Dice apart from the other products in the category is one word...&nbsp; <br /><br /><b>Community.</b><br /><br />This nomination is more than just a reward for Joe, it's a reward for all the geomorphing contributors that have been part of our odd little cartographic community for the past 4 or 5 years.&nbsp;<br /><br />I know how difficult it is to come up with unique cartography and, through my involvement with the Dungeonmorphs 2 Kickstarter, how much work goes into making this idea into a real product.&nbsp; The hours pouring over designs, selecting the best ones and making subtle changes here and there, not to mention the wrangling of manufacturers and shipping out orders.&nbsp; <br /><br /><br />Congratulations to all the mappers out there that made this possible and lets spread the word and turn this nomination into something bigger.<br /><br />Antony Brothertonhttps://plus.google.com/107992636120077421391noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4684041688459097563.post-73815631693796254272015-06-22T18:57:00.000+01:002015-06-22T18:57:11.503+01:00A to Z of UK RPG in the 80s: M is for Mayfair Games<div xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">M is for <a href="http://www.mayfairgames.com/" target="_blank">Mayfair Games</a> founded by Lawyer Darwin Bromley in 1980.&nbsp; This small games publisher branched out into RPGs with the help of veteran Bill Fawcet and began publishing their "Unofficial" AD&amp;D / D&amp;D / T&amp;T compatible adventure modules like 1982s <a href="http://rpggeek.com/rpgitem/53826/question-gravity" target="_blank">Question of Gravity</a> under the Role Aids banner.&nbsp; Their attempt to steer through the copyright minefield by using the coverline "<i>Advanced Dungeons &amp; Dragons</i> is a trademark of TSR Hobbies, Inc. Use of the trademark NOT sanctioned by the holder." they eventually fell foul of the <a href="http://www.thekyngdoms.com/interviews/garygygax.php" target="_blank">changing attitudes to product licensing at TSR</a>.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-cjIxB6jbehw/VVOicc21MWI/AAAAAAAAE58/fK63F-CKacY/s1600/question_of_gravity.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-cjIxB6jbehw/VVOicc21MWI/AAAAAAAAE58/fK63F-CKacY/s320/question_of_gravity.jpg" width="247" /></a></div>Looking at these modules through OSR spectacles they are refreshingly light, yet ambitious and Question of Gravity in particular has a quite unique take on the traditional dungeon.</div><div xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><br />The cover art (by Fantasy author <a href="http://www.paravia.com/JannyWurts/" target="_blank">Janny Wurtz</a>) does not allude in any way to this singularly impressive locale which is the focii for this scenario...&nbsp; <br /><br />... a dungeon on the inside of a 1000ft wide cube. <br /><br />The interior maps are an impressive feat considering the lack of digital artistry back then.&nbsp; I saw something similar nearly 20 years later in Issue #86 of Dungeon Magazine which was a Tracey Hickman Dragonlance scenario called "<a href="http://www.dlnexus.com/products/696.aspx" target="_blank">The Anvil of Time</a>" but this was only one room not a whole dungeon.<br /><br />Grids are notable absent from the maps, this was the 80s after all, where play was freer and not concerned with tactical movement, flanking or god forbid Attacks of Opportunity!!&nbsp; The room (or should I say platform) descriptions oddly don't have the tried and tested "read aloud to the players" boxed text that we have all come to know and love in our pre-written dungeon crawl modules, but in this case I can understand.&nbsp; Enemies can come from any direction and the mind boggles at trying to replicate this on a tabletop grid.&nbsp; The descriptions are brief and designed to give a flavour of what you may encounter, the salient points rather than detailing the minutia.<br /><br /><span id="goog_1450703192"></span><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-sNDX541DZBM/VXC5kjxv1vI/AAAAAAAAE7U/btAmduxArKI/s1600/question_of_gravity_orig.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="161" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-sNDX541DZBM/VXC5kjxv1vI/AAAAAAAAE7U/btAmduxArKI/s200/question_of_gravity_orig.jpg" width="200" /></a></td><td style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-HRgWyqhZq4w/VYhK6uOCokI/AAAAAAAAE88/AOfKfi96LKk/s1600/question_of_gravity_map_sup.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="188" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-HRgWyqhZq4w/VYhK6uOCokI/AAAAAAAAE88/AOfKfi96LKk/s200/question_of_gravity_map_sup.jpg" width="200" /></a></div></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">original hand illustrated map (click to embiggen)</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sketchup Render (click to embiggen)</td></tr></tbody></table><span id="goog_1450703193"></span><br />Whilst these modules are rare, they are still available in all the usual places, and they may well prove to be an unexpected and inspirational distraction for your players.&nbsp; I know that I've got plans for using the cube in my own campaign world. <br /><br /></div>Antony Brothertonhttps://plus.google.com/107992636120077421391noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4684041688459097563.post-51399299160171674362015-03-16T23:46:00.000+00:002015-03-16T23:46:34.307+00:00The Tale of Tynka Azolla - The Isle of Dread - Episode 1As <a href="http://roleplay-geek.blogspot.co.uk/2015/02/reaper-bones-elliwyn-heatherlark-gnome.html" target="_blank">I mentioned in an earlier post</a> I am embarking on my first adventure using D&amp;D 5th Edition and I'm going to chronicle my journey (and that of my character) as a series of blog posts.&nbsp; The format will be character journal entry and then my take on the rules. <br /><br /><b>This being the true and reasonably accurate account of the misadventures of Forest Gnome Barbarian Hermit Tynka Azolla.</b><br /><br />The tribe have left me to look after the old hermit Klandgnor and the egg of Khan Arge in the ruins of Montnorad<br /><br />He's insane but harmless and cries out in his sleep when troubled by the dreams of the 52 black birds and the missing Iles of Cruise, visions of the war between the hawk men of the Capitol and their enemies the Coh Mees of Uesesah.&nbsp; He rambles prophetically about The End of Days when the high priest of Potus spoke to the the amureeckans and told them to go forth and shelter from the fall.<br /><br />I was out picking berries to make a poultice to calm his dream time when a great black shadow passed over the forest, followed by a raucous cawing.&nbsp; When I got back to the ruin it was a shattered mess.&nbsp; There was no sign of the old man or the egg, but in the sky I could see a great bird travelling South.<br /><br />I grabbed my travelling pack, glad that my father had trained me well to always be ready to move at a moments notice and headed South.&nbsp; On the third day I found the hermits body among the flat rocks at the bottom of the waterfall.&nbsp; He had been split open and his insides torn out, great claw scratches littered the rocks among the blood, feathers and viscera.&nbsp; Whatever swooped down and snatched him up had decided to eat him.&nbsp; The egg was nowhere to be seen, so I blessed the old man's corpse and continued South.&nbsp; The hermit had taught me that a great evil resided in the egg and should it be released it would consume the world in destruction, my mission to find the giant bird and retrieve the egg.<br /><br />Eventually coming to a great coastal settlement I found many people who had seen the great bird always heading south.&nbsp; Some said that it must be headed to the Isle of dread.&nbsp; I found a merchant who was assembling a trade ship bound for the Isle.&nbsp; I lied to him about my past but he believed me and I am now one of his bodyguards.&nbsp; <br /><br />We set sail on board a ramshackle ship bound for the Isle.&nbsp; 10 days later we approached the archipelago when an ungodly storm came out of nowhere smashing our ship to pieces and I jumped overboard to save myself.&nbsp; We woke up in the beach battered but alive, a heavy mist obscured the horizon so I went inland in search of fresh water, food and foliage.&nbsp; It was then that the giant crabs attacked, I killed one with my javelin and almost killed two others who were attacking Kendrick the merchant and some of the other survivors and sailors.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-WGBhCOO2eJ0/VQdmq66v_JI/AAAAAAAAE3Y/17I8pR6xvzw/s1600/Episode1_Crabs_Attack.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-WGBhCOO2eJ0/VQdmq66v_JI/AAAAAAAAE3Y/17I8pR6xvzw/s1600/Episode1_Crabs_Attack.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Giant Crabs attack the PCs (yes the pencil sharpener is a PC) and survivors on the sample file beach. </td></tr></tbody></table>When the mist cleared it was clear that we were on a sandbar and the ship had hit a reef a sort distance away.&nbsp; It was heavily damaged but intact if we are to survive we must construct a raft from the flotsam washed up on the sandbar and make our way back to the ship to gather supplies.<br /><br /><b>My Thoughts on Character Generation</b><br /><br />My character is a truly random creation.&nbsp; Race &amp; Class were randomly rolled and Attribute scores were determined from a best of three sets&nbsp; (using 4D6 drop lowest method) then placed appropriately and Race/Class modifiers applied.&nbsp; This resulted in above average STR, INT and DEX scores but a truly awful WIS.<br /><br />The use of predefined "packs" is an excellent answer to long complex equipment lists and gets you up and running in no time.&nbsp; Similarly, I really liked the background aspects of the new character gen system (Personality Traits, Ideals, Bonds, Flaws) which will be of immense help to new players and create some really interesting combinations.<br /><br />I'm a big fan of the way Castles &amp; Crusades / SIEGE system resolves Skill/Attribute checks so I feel quite at home with the new slimmed down skills list and proficiency modifier system.&nbsp; Gone are all those horrible 4e Powers which made even a low level game sound like you were in an 80s anime and drove you nuts tracking Class Feature / Race Power / At Will / Encounter / Daily usage. <br /><br /><b>In play</b><br /><br />Coming around after the shipwreck encounter, I received my first <b>Disadvantage</b> token, which was a real shock.&nbsp; Although it only applied to skill checks it really had an adverse effect on my play.&nbsp; I could not catch a break and I failed all subsequent skill rolls.&nbsp; I'll reserve judgement on this until I've benefitted from <b>Advantage</b> but I'm leaning towards favouring a static positive/negative modifier as I feel it's effects might be too random.<br /><br />Combat seemed way more streamlined and faster than 3.5/4e with a return to the simpler bash/bash mechanics of earlier editions.&nbsp; It may not be terribly realistic, but it gets the job done with the minimum of delay.Antony Brothertonhttps://plus.google.com/107992636120077421391noreply@blogger.com0